I just wanted to wish all of you good luck for the new academic year!
I'm in RA Training - students are moving in at the end of this week and classes will start on Monday. I can't believe how fast the summer went and that the new school year is already starting. I'm excited for my residents to get here and to see how things will work at my new institution; I'm also anxious and don't feel ready for the residents to be here already. But no matter how I feel, they're here and it's time to start a new year.
Good Luck to all of you as you start a new academic year! :)
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Monday, August 3, 2009
Books, books, books
Okay, so one of you asked if I had any recommendations regarding good Student Affairs books (this would have been a lot easier if the questions was just books...haha...in that case, I would recommend Harry Potter, Anne of Green Gables, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and Pride & Prejudice).
But on a serious note: Below are some Student Affairs books that I've enjoyed reading (and no, these citations will not be in APA format but I'm sure you'll be able to still figure out what books I'm talking about...sorry, but I have never been a fan of APA format - even though the APA Manual is one of the books on my bookshelf - and when I don't have to cite things that way, I won't...LoL):
- Beginning Your Journey: A Guide for New Professionals in Student Affairs by Marilyn J. Amey and Lori M. Reesor, editors
I read this after graduating from my Master's Program. It had some good advice, definitely made me think about me as a professional and what I wanted to accomplish in my first position, and was an easy read.
- Learning Partnerships: Theory and models of practice to educate for self-authorship by Marcia Baxter Magolda and Patricia M. King, editors
Now I'm not really a theory person. I think there's a value in theory; I studied it like so many of us and I try to keep it in mind when I work with students; I use some theories (and of course best practices) when developing new initiatives; BUT you'll hardly ever find me raving about a theory book. This book, Learning Partnerships, I liked because while it gives you the basics of the theory, it also provides a lot of examples about how this theory has been utilized. It was easy for me to look at the programs that were similar to what I wanted to accomplish and utilize some of their strategies. This book was definitely a great help when I developed the Residential Curriculum for my living learning community.
- Toward Acceptance: Sexual Orientation Issues on Campus by Vernon A. Wall and Nancy J. Evans, editors
Another easy read that gives some practical examples and even some activities you can take straight out of the book and utilize with your students.
- White Awareness - Handbook for Anti-Racism Training by Judith H. Katz
Not necessarily my favorite read - Part 1 is a little hard to get through but it's only 30 pages and then follow over a 100 pages with exercises and activities that you can utilize or slightly alter when working with students and staff. :)
- Advising Student Groups and Organizations by Norvert W. Dunkel and John H. Schuh
A classic when it comes to working with student groups. If you have a lot of experience advising, this may not be the best book for you but if you're looking for a good introduction on how to work with student groups and some resources, this book is for you.
If you're looking for some related literature, one of my colleagues recently borrowed the book "Cutting: Understanding and Overcoming Self-Mutilation by Steven Levenkron" from me. Not the newest book on the topic but a good overview about cutting. It's a pretty easy read and addresses a topic that most of us problably don't know a lot about.
And if, after reading all this Student Affairs literature, your head hurts and you just want to read something fun, don't forget about my recommendation from the beginning of this post.
But on a serious note: Below are some Student Affairs books that I've enjoyed reading (and no, these citations will not be in APA format but I'm sure you'll be able to still figure out what books I'm talking about...sorry, but I have never been a fan of APA format - even though the APA Manual is one of the books on my bookshelf - and when I don't have to cite things that way, I won't...LoL):
- Beginning Your Journey: A Guide for New Professionals in Student Affairs by Marilyn J. Amey and Lori M. Reesor, editors
I read this after graduating from my Master's Program. It had some good advice, definitely made me think about me as a professional and what I wanted to accomplish in my first position, and was an easy read.
- Learning Partnerships: Theory and models of practice to educate for self-authorship by Marcia Baxter Magolda and Patricia M. King, editors
Now I'm not really a theory person. I think there's a value in theory; I studied it like so many of us and I try to keep it in mind when I work with students; I use some theories (and of course best practices) when developing new initiatives; BUT you'll hardly ever find me raving about a theory book. This book, Learning Partnerships, I liked because while it gives you the basics of the theory, it also provides a lot of examples about how this theory has been utilized. It was easy for me to look at the programs that were similar to what I wanted to accomplish and utilize some of their strategies. This book was definitely a great help when I developed the Residential Curriculum for my living learning community.
- Toward Acceptance: Sexual Orientation Issues on Campus by Vernon A. Wall and Nancy J. Evans, editors
Another easy read that gives some practical examples and even some activities you can take straight out of the book and utilize with your students.
- White Awareness - Handbook for Anti-Racism Training by Judith H. Katz
Not necessarily my favorite read - Part 1 is a little hard to get through but it's only 30 pages and then follow over a 100 pages with exercises and activities that you can utilize or slightly alter when working with students and staff. :)
- Advising Student Groups and Organizations by Norvert W. Dunkel and John H. Schuh
A classic when it comes to working with student groups. If you have a lot of experience advising, this may not be the best book for you but if you're looking for a good introduction on how to work with student groups and some resources, this book is for you.
If you're looking for some related literature, one of my colleagues recently borrowed the book "Cutting: Understanding and Overcoming Self-Mutilation by Steven Levenkron" from me. Not the newest book on the topic but a good overview about cutting. It's a pretty easy read and addresses a topic that most of us problably don't know a lot about.
And if, after reading all this Student Affairs literature, your head hurts and you just want to read something fun, don't forget about my recommendation from the beginning of this post.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
The evening before...
Hey there,
I start my new job tomorrow. I really have no reason to be nervous; I've done this before - yes, at another institution but still. I know how to be run a residence hall, how to supervise an RA staff. For most of my colleagues, this will be their first full-time job after graduate school - I have the advantage of having previous experience. But I can't help it. I'm nervous. I don't like new beginnings. There's too much awkwardness - too much not-knowing. But talking about it just makes me more nervous, so let's change topics.
One of you asked if I had any Student Affairs book suggestions. I do - but all my books are still in boxes (I'm waiting until I can move into my office to unpack those) and I'm one of those readers who doesn't pay any attention to the author's name. It took me forever to remember that J.K. Rowling wrote Harry Potter - so there's no chance I'd remember the author of some Student Affairs book. Sorry!
Anyway, as soon as I've unpacked, I'll post some suggestions on this blog.
And of course I'll let you all know how my first days at work go....
I start my new job tomorrow. I really have no reason to be nervous; I've done this before - yes, at another institution but still. I know how to be run a residence hall, how to supervise an RA staff. For most of my colleagues, this will be their first full-time job after graduate school - I have the advantage of having previous experience. But I can't help it. I'm nervous. I don't like new beginnings. There's too much awkwardness - too much not-knowing. But talking about it just makes me more nervous, so let's change topics.
One of you asked if I had any Student Affairs book suggestions. I do - but all my books are still in boxes (I'm waiting until I can move into my office to unpack those) and I'm one of those readers who doesn't pay any attention to the author's name. It took me forever to remember that J.K. Rowling wrote Harry Potter - so there's no chance I'd remember the author of some Student Affairs book. Sorry!
Anyway, as soon as I've unpacked, I'll post some suggestions on this blog.
And of course I'll let you all know how my first days at work go....
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Roadtrip Update & Thoughts about the Future
Hello everyone,
It’s been a while. I apologize. I was traveling and didn’t have access to internet all that often. I actually don’t have access to internet right now but I decided to write this blog now and then copy and paste it into the actual blog tomorrow when I’ll be having lunch at a Panera Bread.
This has been my summer of random roadtrips. I’ve been to 11 states in the past month and there’s a few more to come in the next week; I’ve gotten really good at setting up my tent quickly and I’ve slept in my car twice (it’s really not that uncomfortable). I’ve also been to 8 concerts, strolled through various cities, explored national parks, visited two good friends from undergraduate, painted a shirt, made a video and and and. There definitely haven’t been a lot of dull moments. ;)
I’m currently at my new institution – I decided to drop off half of my belongings now before going to Invisible Children’s Lobby Days (Monday, Tuesday). Then I’ll get the rest of my stuff and return for good. One more week of vacation and on July 6, I’ll be starting my new job.
I’m excited – and nervous. New beginnings, new places, new people stress me out. I’m worried about making a good impression, about proving that they made a good decision by hiring me, about living up to my own expectations. I don’t like the feeling of not knowing what to do – how things are done here. I worry about my relationships with the other staff members – professional staff and student staff. I worry about vandalism in my building – after all, I’ll be in a new building and it’ll be horrible if my students “destroy” the new facilities. And even though I’m not responsible for their actions, there’ll always be the question, “ Was there something that I could have done?”
Did I mention that I have a tendency to overanalyze things and freak myself out?!?
I like to set new goals for myself over the summer but I’m having a hard time doing that this year. There’s just so much you don’t know when you start a new job. I mean, I know how to be a hall director; but I don’t know how to be a hall director HERE.
As always, I have the goal of making my personal life a bit more of a priority; as always, we’ll see how that goes. I have a few friends here; maybe that’ll help. I drove around today and saw all the shops and restaurants – so at least IF I want to go somewhere, there’ll be places to go. And there’s the beach!!! I can’t wait to go to the beach; just stretch out on a towel and relax, daydream, read a good book. I really want a boat! Haha, I know I’m crazy. But seriously, could you imagine anything more amazing than going out on a boat, turning off the motor and just floating around while reading a good book. That’d be so relaxing! :D I even thought of some good boat names: I was thinking Lily or Phoenix (both inspired by Harry Potter), Bregenz or Elisabeth (Austria), Fantaghiro (princess in my favorite fairy tale), See The World (hmmm, maybe inspired by a band I know…LoL), dragonfly or imagine. Any thoughts?
I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about the future lately. It all started when one of my friends told me that she got engaged and will be getting married next summer. Since then, my friends and I have talked about weddings, bachelorette parties, our dream vacation home in Tuscany (we want to rent one – or later buy it – and get our four families to go there and hang out), children, etc. Yeah, our topics of conversation have changed quite a bit from when we first starting hanging out. LoL.
If this was my summer of random roadtrips, next year will be my summer of international wedding. I’m going to India for one of my friend’s weddings and then I’ll be going to Austria for my other friend’s wedding. I just hope none of the dates overlap (I also hope they don’t overlap with the NACURH conference since I’ll be the RHA Advisor next year….yay!!!...and would love to take a delegation to NACURH). And I should probably start saving money and vacation days now because that’ll be quite a bit of traveling – and not as cheap as me driving around the US and sleeping in my car, a tent or a cheap hotel room that I reserved through hotwire.com the night before.
Well, I’m off to bed. I’m too lazy to get sheets out of one of my boxes; I think I’ll just use my sleeping bag. I’ve gotten so used to the simple life.
I hope you’re all enjoying the summer!
Friday, May 29, 2009
Summer
I am procrastinating from packing. I just moved a bunch of stuff down to the storage room in the basement, so i figured I'd deserve a little break, right?
My apartment is starting to look empty, so at least I'm making some progress. I have to be out of here Monday. My supervisor - or I guess, former supervisor now - is coming over at 8 am to check me out. Argh, so much for sleeping in on my last day here. Oh well, more time to travel, right? ;)
I've packed up all my Student Affairs book. Usually, I try to read some thing for work on vacation, but I decided that this year I'll really really be on vacation and for once not think about work. I can't really prepare for next year anyway, since I'm moving to a new institution.
It feels strange though. At this time of the summer, I would usually be pouring over Student Affairs literature, trying to revise my curriculum for the year, developing new initiatives. Instead I'm re-reading Harry Potter and getting ready for a quite adventurous vacation with camping, concerts and visiting friends.
I have been thinking a little about next year. I mean, last semester I organized this huge Invisible Children Challenge. So what should my next project be? I could do Invisible Children again. I'm not sure how much my new students would get into that. I could also try to pick another organization and figure out something new. I'm just not sure. But I know I'd like to do something again....
Okay, I think I'll have some ice cream and then it's back to packing. The goal is to get the majority packed tonight, do laundry and finish up a few more things tomorrow, and then just relax and do nothing on Sunday. Sounds like a plan, right?
Oh, I apologize in advance if I don't update this in a while. I'm going camping/hiking and don't know when I'll have access to internet. I'm sure I'll stop by a Panera Break occasionally though and will update all of you then.
My apartment is starting to look empty, so at least I'm making some progress. I have to be out of here Monday. My supervisor - or I guess, former supervisor now - is coming over at 8 am to check me out. Argh, so much for sleeping in on my last day here. Oh well, more time to travel, right? ;)
I've packed up all my Student Affairs book. Usually, I try to read some thing for work on vacation, but I decided that this year I'll really really be on vacation and for once not think about work. I can't really prepare for next year anyway, since I'm moving to a new institution.
It feels strange though. At this time of the summer, I would usually be pouring over Student Affairs literature, trying to revise my curriculum for the year, developing new initiatives. Instead I'm re-reading Harry Potter and getting ready for a quite adventurous vacation with camping, concerts and visiting friends.
I have been thinking a little about next year. I mean, last semester I organized this huge Invisible Children Challenge. So what should my next project be? I could do Invisible Children again. I'm not sure how much my new students would get into that. I could also try to pick another organization and figure out something new. I'm just not sure. But I know I'd like to do something again....
Okay, I think I'll have some ice cream and then it's back to packing. The goal is to get the majority packed tonight, do laundry and finish up a few more things tomorrow, and then just relax and do nothing on Sunday. Sounds like a plan, right?
Oh, I apologize in advance if I don't update this in a while. I'm going camping/hiking and don't know when I'll have access to internet. I'm sure I'll stop by a Panera Break occasionally though and will update all of you then.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Life on the Road - Part 1
Ten month contracts are great! I'm going to miss having the opportunity to have the summer off. But hey, at least I'll have vacation days now, so if I really really really need to go somewhere (like an Invisible Children event or a concert), I'd be able to do that. ;)
On May 31st (the latest...maybe a few days before), I'll be checking out of my apartment. I'm not sure yet when I'll be moving into my new apartment at my new institution, but it probably won't be until much later in June or even July 1 or so (I start work on July 6). What will I be doing in between? Yeah, that is a good question. LoL.
I'm definitely going to visit some friends. I've also thought about going camping - I would have to buy a tent though - you know, just drive to some National Park, set up my tent and then go hiking on a different trail every day. I like hiking. And I'll be in Washington D.C. for Invisible Children's Lobby Days June 22nd and the 23rd. Other than that, who knows.
This week has been a good preparation for life on the road. I got in my car Tuesday morning, drove five hours, hung out with friends, crashed on a friend's couch. I stayed there for a few days. Then back on the road. Saw a concert, drove until I was too tired so I got a hotel room. The next day, I "explored" the area, then stayed at another hotel. And tomorrow, I'll be heading back - I almost wrote "heading back home" but then, is it really home? I mean, I'll only be living there for a few more days, the majority of my apartment is already packed up and mentally I've definitely said goodbye already.
So here are a few things I've learned about life on the road:
- I love singing along to CDs. Roadtrips on your own are a great time to learn lyrics to new songs...LoL.
- Hotwire is awesome. If you book a hotel room the day before, you can find something really cheap in awesome locations.
- Stop at Panera Bread. Free Wi-Fi and relatively healthy food. ;) (No, I do not get paid for promoting businesses or bands...haha.)
- And if you start feeling lonely, get out your phone, call a friend and tell them funny stories from the road.
Well, I should get back to work. I got roped into doing a training session about the summer reading program for our Orientation Staff. I've been off contract for over a week and I still get sucked into doing things - argh! I know, I know, I could have just said no but you know me, "no" isn't really in my vocabulary. ;)
On May 31st (the latest...maybe a few days before), I'll be checking out of my apartment. I'm not sure yet when I'll be moving into my new apartment at my new institution, but it probably won't be until much later in June or even July 1 or so (I start work on July 6). What will I be doing in between? Yeah, that is a good question. LoL.
I'm definitely going to visit some friends. I've also thought about going camping - I would have to buy a tent though - you know, just drive to some National Park, set up my tent and then go hiking on a different trail every day. I like hiking. And I'll be in Washington D.C. for Invisible Children's Lobby Days June 22nd and the 23rd. Other than that, who knows.
This week has been a good preparation for life on the road. I got in my car Tuesday morning, drove five hours, hung out with friends, crashed on a friend's couch. I stayed there for a few days. Then back on the road. Saw a concert, drove until I was too tired so I got a hotel room. The next day, I "explored" the area, then stayed at another hotel. And tomorrow, I'll be heading back - I almost wrote "heading back home" but then, is it really home? I mean, I'll only be living there for a few more days, the majority of my apartment is already packed up and mentally I've definitely said goodbye already.
So here are a few things I've learned about life on the road:
- I love singing along to CDs. Roadtrips on your own are a great time to learn lyrics to new songs...LoL.
- Hotwire is awesome. If you book a hotel room the day before, you can find something really cheap in awesome locations.
- Stop at Panera Bread. Free Wi-Fi and relatively healthy food. ;) (No, I do not get paid for promoting businesses or bands...haha.)
- And if you start feeling lonely, get out your phone, call a friend and tell them funny stories from the road.
Well, I should get back to work. I got roped into doing a training session about the summer reading program for our Orientation Staff. I've been off contract for over a week and I still get sucked into doing things - argh! I know, I know, I could have just said no but you know me, "no" isn't really in my vocabulary. ;)
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
The Adventure begins...
I love not having any work to do!!!
As I'm sure anyone who follows this blog knows, I am a workaholic. When I'm working, I work all the time - and when I'm not working, I think about work.
But I also LOVE vacations. Like with everything else in my life, I don't just have time off or go on vacation - I go all out. So if I'm "relaxing at home," I may not get out of bed all day and just sleep and read and sleep and read (usually a Harry Potter book). And when I decide to leave and go somewhere, I don't just go somewhere on some boring grown-up vacation; oh no, it has to be an adventure.
After a few boring days of packing, I decided it was time to GO SOMEWHERE. I haven't stopped thinking about going to that concert 11 1/2 hours away - and after some phone calls, it didn't seem like such a crazy idea anymore - well, maybe a little crazy but in a good way, right? I mean, I don't have to do the drive in one day - I have NOTHING TO DO RIGHT NOW!!! Haha. I'm really excited about that in case you haven't noticed.
So I got up early this morning, packed a bag, got in the car and drove five hours to see one of my former RAs. I've missed her!!! We hung out, chatted, laughed - it was so nice just to catch up - and yes, I realize it's only been a little more than a week since we last saw each other. And it's nice not being the supervisor anymore. ;) Not that it was ever a challenge supervising her - she was one of my superstar RAs, but it's nice just being the mentor/older friend.
In the late afternoon, we drove another two hours to a concert - haha, big surprise there!
The concert was at a church - a youth group thing. Yes, the same band I saw Saturday. I could seriously watch them every day - they're simply AMAZING! Their lead singer - let's call him Jeremy, Jasper or whatever (sorry, inside joke) - just gets so into it and it's obvious that he just LOVES what he does and is having the time of his life. I love watching people that are passionate about what they're doing. I mean, that's what I love about Student Affairs - the fact that I have the opportunity to help students figure out what they are passionate about and then support them in achieving their dreams. And here's someone who is living his dream. It's so inspiring to see that and get to be a tiny part of it.
Now, I'm sure you're wondering what the name of this mystery band is? Because I KNOW you are all itching to go to their MySpace page and listen to their music...so here you go:
See The World
http://seetheworldmusic.com/
http://myspace.com/seetheworldmusic
Check them out and get inspired!
As I'm sure anyone who follows this blog knows, I am a workaholic. When I'm working, I work all the time - and when I'm not working, I think about work.
But I also LOVE vacations. Like with everything else in my life, I don't just have time off or go on vacation - I go all out. So if I'm "relaxing at home," I may not get out of bed all day and just sleep and read and sleep and read (usually a Harry Potter book). And when I decide to leave and go somewhere, I don't just go somewhere on some boring grown-up vacation; oh no, it has to be an adventure.
After a few boring days of packing, I decided it was time to GO SOMEWHERE. I haven't stopped thinking about going to that concert 11 1/2 hours away - and after some phone calls, it didn't seem like such a crazy idea anymore - well, maybe a little crazy but in a good way, right? I mean, I don't have to do the drive in one day - I have NOTHING TO DO RIGHT NOW!!! Haha. I'm really excited about that in case you haven't noticed.
So I got up early this morning, packed a bag, got in the car and drove five hours to see one of my former RAs. I've missed her!!! We hung out, chatted, laughed - it was so nice just to catch up - and yes, I realize it's only been a little more than a week since we last saw each other. And it's nice not being the supervisor anymore. ;) Not that it was ever a challenge supervising her - she was one of my superstar RAs, but it's nice just being the mentor/older friend.
In the late afternoon, we drove another two hours to a concert - haha, big surprise there!
The concert was at a church - a youth group thing. Yes, the same band I saw Saturday. I could seriously watch them every day - they're simply AMAZING! Their lead singer - let's call him Jeremy, Jasper or whatever (sorry, inside joke) - just gets so into it and it's obvious that he just LOVES what he does and is having the time of his life. I love watching people that are passionate about what they're doing. I mean, that's what I love about Student Affairs - the fact that I have the opportunity to help students figure out what they are passionate about and then support them in achieving their dreams. And here's someone who is living his dream. It's so inspiring to see that and get to be a tiny part of it.
Now, I'm sure you're wondering what the name of this mystery band is? Because I KNOW you are all itching to go to their MySpace page and listen to their music...so here you go:
See The World
http://seetheworldmusic.com/
http://myspace.com/seetheworldmusic
Check them out and get inspired!
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Summer Residents and Packing
My building is being used as the summer residence hall; any students living here over the summer are staying here. I'm not the staff member responsible for it - hey, my contracted ended two days ago - so I have absolutely nothing to do with all this, but oh man, it's ANNOYING! I enjoyed having the building to myself. The quiet, the peacefulness. Being able to walk out your door and not run into any students. Being able to blast your music whenever you feel like it. Running down the hall in your pajamas taking out the trash. There's so many things I could do and now....
I just took a quick nap and woke up to loud - no, VERY loud talking in the hallway. They better cut that out in the evenings when I'm trying to go to bed.
It's just weird. It doesn't feel like the building is "mine" anymore. One of my colleagues has taken over my office. She's great and she's been trying to stay out of my way and keep others away from me as much as possible. But it's still strange to hear someone in the office - especially since it's attached to my apartment. I always walked in through that door; now I have to go around.
I'm more and more ready to get out of here. If these things would just pack themselves. Why do I have so much stuff???? I've been pretty good about throwing things away - well, relatively good. There's a few things I just can't part with: a copy of every newspaper from my days as editor at the student newspaper at my undergrad, the beautifully organized articles and notes from graduate school (I haven't looked at them once since I graduated...okay, not true, I did use one article once and I just looked through all of them again now, but still... worth it? I don't know), tons of pictures, stuffed animals, my collection of books (mostly series so there's always at least five or more), all my art supplies and and and. I tried to pack in a way that would make "sense" - to make unpacking easier but also to ensure that none of the boxes were too heavy (why did I get such big boxes?). It's not really working. Now I'm down to the odds and ends in most of the rooms; things that I just don't know what to do with or that are no fun sorting through/organizing. So I'm procrastinating.
But I got some new motivation this weekend: I went to a concert of a friend's band - and he joked about how I should come to another concert next Saturday. The concert is - wait for it - 11 1/2 hours away. And yes, I'm seriously considering going. I thought about stopping by a friend's place that's half-way, maybe catch one or two concerts on the way (I mean, the band's kinda going in the same direction I would...just with a few detours). But I'd probably have to leave on Tuesday.
I don't have to check out of my apartment until May 31st, but if I leave for a week or so, I'd probably want to have the majority packed, so I can come back, spend a few nights, get some good rest and take a few long showers, and then hit the road. So this is now my motivation to continue packing....
I just took a quick nap and woke up to loud - no, VERY loud talking in the hallway. They better cut that out in the evenings when I'm trying to go to bed.
It's just weird. It doesn't feel like the building is "mine" anymore. One of my colleagues has taken over my office. She's great and she's been trying to stay out of my way and keep others away from me as much as possible. But it's still strange to hear someone in the office - especially since it's attached to my apartment. I always walked in through that door; now I have to go around.
I'm more and more ready to get out of here. If these things would just pack themselves. Why do I have so much stuff???? I've been pretty good about throwing things away - well, relatively good. There's a few things I just can't part with: a copy of every newspaper from my days as editor at the student newspaper at my undergrad, the beautifully organized articles and notes from graduate school (I haven't looked at them once since I graduated...okay, not true, I did use one article once and I just looked through all of them again now, but still... worth it? I don't know), tons of pictures, stuffed animals, my collection of books (mostly series so there's always at least five or more), all my art supplies and and and. I tried to pack in a way that would make "sense" - to make unpacking easier but also to ensure that none of the boxes were too heavy (why did I get such big boxes?). It's not really working. Now I'm down to the odds and ends in most of the rooms; things that I just don't know what to do with or that are no fun sorting through/organizing. So I'm procrastinating.
But I got some new motivation this weekend: I went to a concert of a friend's band - and he joked about how I should come to another concert next Saturday. The concert is - wait for it - 11 1/2 hours away. And yes, I'm seriously considering going. I thought about stopping by a friend's place that's half-way, maybe catch one or two concerts on the way (I mean, the band's kinda going in the same direction I would...just with a few detours). But I'd probably have to leave on Tuesday.
I don't have to check out of my apartment until May 31st, but if I leave for a week or so, I'd probably want to have the majority packed, so I can come back, spend a few nights, get some good rest and take a few long showers, and then hit the road. So this is now my motivation to continue packing....
Friday, May 15, 2009
It's going to be legen - wait for it - dary
You know how you watch a new TV show or hang out with a new group of people and they have a catch phrase they say over and over and over again - and at first you think it's funny and adorable - or maybe you think it's annoying and weird - but eventually you stop noticing it UNTIL one of your friends points out that you've started using that phrase.
At the end of April/beginning of May, when I was completely sucked into the Invisible Children world, I started saying "epic." A couple of the staff members said it at the Rescue events I was at. Then, Marcus and Cameron used it on the live feed. And soon I found myself thinking and saying it. Next year would be epic. My summer of adventures would be epic. The next WE THE LIVING concert would be epic. Seeing See The World (another one of my favorite bands) in concert would be epic. Epic, epic, epic.
Well, I recently got hooked on the TV show "How I Met Your Mother." And the two words that are now stuck in my head are "legendary" and "awesome."
I'm not new to "overusing" a word or phrase. Last year, I used "fabulous" all the time. Apparently, at a staff meeting, some of my RAs started counting how often I would say it. After someone pointed it out, I tried to vary my vocabulary a little more.
Anyway, this wasn't what I meant to blog about. I just wanted to tell you about something that is going to be EPIC, legen - wait for it - dary, awesome and fabulous. :)
Remember when I was telling you all about my interview and how I got to go to the construction of the new building and how absolutely amazing it was...
Well, here's the exciting news: I'm going to be one of the area coordinators of this new building. AND to make it even better: a graduate student from here, that I'm friends with, is going to be the other area coordinator. How awesome is that?
At the end of April/beginning of May, when I was completely sucked into the Invisible Children world, I started saying "epic." A couple of the staff members said it at the Rescue events I was at. Then, Marcus and Cameron used it on the live feed. And soon I found myself thinking and saying it. Next year would be epic. My summer of adventures would be epic. The next WE THE LIVING concert would be epic. Seeing See The World (another one of my favorite bands) in concert would be epic. Epic, epic, epic.
Well, I recently got hooked on the TV show "How I Met Your Mother." And the two words that are now stuck in my head are "legendary" and "awesome."
I'm not new to "overusing" a word or phrase. Last year, I used "fabulous" all the time. Apparently, at a staff meeting, some of my RAs started counting how often I would say it. After someone pointed it out, I tried to vary my vocabulary a little more.
Anyway, this wasn't what I meant to blog about. I just wanted to tell you about something that is going to be EPIC, legen - wait for it - dary, awesome and fabulous. :)
Remember when I was telling you all about my interview and how I got to go to the construction of the new building and how absolutely amazing it was...
Well, here's the exciting news: I'm going to be one of the area coordinators of this new building. AND to make it even better: a graduate student from here, that I'm friends with, is going to be the other area coordinator. How awesome is that?
Monday, May 11, 2009
Never doubt that a small group of citizens can make a difference....
There are so many organizations out there that fight for good causes. I've always struggled at choosing one or two of them; there are just so many things that I care about. I care about the environment; I love animals; I am against war; I believe in fighting inequality and and and.
But even I had to realize that we can't do everything. So I've tried to figure out ways to help the causes that mean the most to me without spreading myself to thin.
I'm a vegatarian because I don't like the way animals are treated. I don't believe that eating meat in itself is wrong - even though I'm not sure I could ever make myself eat meat again - but I believe that the way animals are treated in mass production of meat is wrong and I will not support the torture of innocent animals.
I recycle; I try to walk as often as possible instead of driving; I turn the lights in my apartment (and the rest of my building) off whenever I leave a room.
And I've become an active supporter of Invisible Children. I don't believe in war. But it always seemed to hard to do anything to stop the wars that are going on around the world. I mean, what was I, one person, supposed to do? Invisible Children has given me an opportunity to do something to try to end a war. And the fewer wars the better. War is NEVER the answer.
So on June 22-23, I'll be attending Invisible Children's Lobby Days because it is time to end Africa's longest running war and to rescue Joseph Kony's child soldiers and bring them home. It won't be easy - and it won't happen fast - but at least there's something I can do to act in accordance with my beliefs.
If you want to find out more about Lobby Days, go to howitends.tv.
And Invisible Children isn't the thing for you, I encourage you to find something that you are passionate about and then find a way to do something about it. It is time we all stand up for what we belive in and try to make this a better world!
But even I had to realize that we can't do everything. So I've tried to figure out ways to help the causes that mean the most to me without spreading myself to thin.
I'm a vegatarian because I don't like the way animals are treated. I don't believe that eating meat in itself is wrong - even though I'm not sure I could ever make myself eat meat again - but I believe that the way animals are treated in mass production of meat is wrong and I will not support the torture of innocent animals.
I recycle; I try to walk as often as possible instead of driving; I turn the lights in my apartment (and the rest of my building) off whenever I leave a room.
And I've become an active supporter of Invisible Children. I don't believe in war. But it always seemed to hard to do anything to stop the wars that are going on around the world. I mean, what was I, one person, supposed to do? Invisible Children has given me an opportunity to do something to try to end a war. And the fewer wars the better. War is NEVER the answer.
So on June 22-23, I'll be attending Invisible Children's Lobby Days because it is time to end Africa's longest running war and to rescue Joseph Kony's child soldiers and bring them home. It won't be easy - and it won't happen fast - but at least there's something I can do to act in accordance with my beliefs.
If you want to find out more about Lobby Days, go to howitends.tv.
And Invisible Children isn't the thing for you, I encourage you to find something that you are passionate about and then find a way to do something about it. It is time we all stand up for what we belive in and try to make this a better world!
Not just the end of another year...
I closed my building on Friday. It was one of the smoothest closing I've ever had. No, of course everything didn't go over perfectly. There was the student who refused to clean his room. There were the two or three students who just left and didn't check out. There was the student, who at 7 pm, when the building was supposed to be closed, just started packing and said, "Oh, I didn't realize we had to be out by 7." Really? Like it hasn't been in every newsletter for the past month and a half, on a toilet talk posted in every toilet stall and on every bulletin board in the hall.
But the staff what they were supposed to do - check rooms, make sure refrigerators were clean, asking students to go back and clean more if necessary. Yeah, there was the one time I came to the Lobby and they were all playing video games and not really paying attention and nobody would get up when a student said she needed to be checked out; but after I asked them to pay better attention, they did and soon even turned off the video games.
There are so many reasons I need to get out of here, but my staff is definitely one of them. I couldn't have asked for a better staff for my last year here. They weren't perfect but they tried. I didn't have to worry about most of them; they did their job. Sometimes I felt like they could have run the building without me. They put their residents' needs first; they built relationships and helped their students with their transition to college. And after some pushing, most of them really embraced the idea of challenging our students to think about more serious topic and to initiate meaningful conversations.
I've also never had that hard of a time saying goodbye to a staff. I've become very close with many of them. In the past I've had RAs move on to other staff or not return as an RA - but they were always at the institution for at least another year and we knew we'd see each other occasionally. So we had that time to grow apart when we weren't living and working in the same building anymore and when they graduated, it was easier to say goodbye. This year, for the first time, I had RAs from my staff graduate and with me leaving, I had to say goodbye to all of them. I'm not good at saying goodbye. I just try to avoid it, not think about it, and then deal with it later. One of my RAs started crying when we said goodbye...that's never happened to me before. I felt like crying myself but was trying to be strong. I'm going to miss them....
But the staff what they were supposed to do - check rooms, make sure refrigerators were clean, asking students to go back and clean more if necessary. Yeah, there was the one time I came to the Lobby and they were all playing video games and not really paying attention and nobody would get up when a student said she needed to be checked out; but after I asked them to pay better attention, they did and soon even turned off the video games.
There are so many reasons I need to get out of here, but my staff is definitely one of them. I couldn't have asked for a better staff for my last year here. They weren't perfect but they tried. I didn't have to worry about most of them; they did their job. Sometimes I felt like they could have run the building without me. They put their residents' needs first; they built relationships and helped their students with their transition to college. And after some pushing, most of them really embraced the idea of challenging our students to think about more serious topic and to initiate meaningful conversations.
I've also never had that hard of a time saying goodbye to a staff. I've become very close with many of them. In the past I've had RAs move on to other staff or not return as an RA - but they were always at the institution for at least another year and we knew we'd see each other occasionally. So we had that time to grow apart when we weren't living and working in the same building anymore and when they graduated, it was easier to say goodbye. This year, for the first time, I had RAs from my staff graduate and with me leaving, I had to say goodbye to all of them. I'm not good at saying goodbye. I just try to avoid it, not think about it, and then deal with it later. One of my RAs started crying when we said goodbye...that's never happened to me before. I felt like crying myself but was trying to be strong. I'm going to miss them....
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Closing
Friday was the last day of classes. In less than a week, we'll be closing the building.
I just spent the past hour putting together our Closing Binder. Closing is one of those things that should be simple and straight-forward but it never is. RAs forget to do something when checking out a resident. Residents say they are ready to check out but half their belongings are still in the room. Keys disappear. Trash rooms get - well, trashed.
I'm trying to be as organized as possible. RAs are assigned to specific jobs and I've stressed several times how important it will be to pay attention to every detail. I also made checklists that they can take with them when checking a room. My grads and I will also be double-checking every room before turning it over to Housekeeping.
Everything will be a little more stressful because we are housing parents of graduates for Commencement in my building. That means the Housekeeping staff needs to clean all of our rooms and common areas between Friday night and Saturday at noon. My staff and I will have to be even more on top of our work to make sure that we can turn rooms over as early as possible to the Housekeeping staff.
I'm not really nervous about Closing. I've closed buildings for several years now. But I'm also not really looking forward to it. Every year, I've run into some problems with RAs. Last year, for example, some of them forgot to check if residents had cleaned out the refrigerators - so I had to send them back to the room to clean those fridges before turning the rooms over to Housekeeping (after all, it wouldn't be fair to make Housekeeping pay for our mistakes). Then two keys were missing - we found them in the end but there was a few very uncomfortable conversations and a very upset and defensive RA. I'd really love to end with the staff on a positive note; so let's all keep our fingers crossed that we won't have any of these issues this year.
I just spent the past hour putting together our Closing Binder. Closing is one of those things that should be simple and straight-forward but it never is. RAs forget to do something when checking out a resident. Residents say they are ready to check out but half their belongings are still in the room. Keys disappear. Trash rooms get - well, trashed.
I'm trying to be as organized as possible. RAs are assigned to specific jobs and I've stressed several times how important it will be to pay attention to every detail. I also made checklists that they can take with them when checking a room. My grads and I will also be double-checking every room before turning it over to Housekeeping.
Everything will be a little more stressful because we are housing parents of graduates for Commencement in my building. That means the Housekeeping staff needs to clean all of our rooms and common areas between Friday night and Saturday at noon. My staff and I will have to be even more on top of our work to make sure that we can turn rooms over as early as possible to the Housekeeping staff.
I'm not really nervous about Closing. I've closed buildings for several years now. But I'm also not really looking forward to it. Every year, I've run into some problems with RAs. Last year, for example, some of them forgot to check if residents had cleaned out the refrigerators - so I had to send them back to the room to clean those fridges before turning the rooms over to Housekeeping (after all, it wouldn't be fair to make Housekeeping pay for our mistakes). Then two keys were missing - we found them in the end but there was a few very uncomfortable conversations and a very upset and defensive RA. I'd really love to end with the staff on a positive note; so let's all keep our fingers crossed that we won't have any of these issues this year.
Friday, May 1, 2009
In the name of love, Oprah come and rescue us...
On April 25th, thousands of people in 100 cities around the world abducted themselves to raise awareness to the plight of child soldiers in Uganda. The goal of The Rescue, an event organized by Invisible Children (www.invisiblechildren.com), is to end Africa's longest running war and to free Joseph Kony's child soldiers.
If you haven't watched Invisible Children - The Rough Cut yet, go to http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3166797753930210643 and watch the 55 minute documentary that started it all. Then, go to http://therescue.invisiblechildren.com and check out the 30 minute documentary about The Rescue.
So on April 25th, one of my friends and I grabbed our sleeping bags and drove to one of the cities participating in The Rescue. We met up with several hundred volunteers at the Abduction spot. After some waiting, we split up into groups of 20; each group had a long rope that participants held on to; and then we started marching to our LRA Camp. We sat up camp, wrote letters to senators and other people of cultural or political influence, listened to music, hung out an waited...
What were we waiting for? To be rescued!
To be rescued, we had to be covered by a major media outlet and a person of cultural or political significance had to come and read The Rescue anthem.
Our city was rescued Saturday evening. We had planned on spending the night; and a large group of people still stuck around, spent the night and then marched past the media outlets in the morning to get some more coverage - but my friend decided that she had too much work to do, so we headed back home.
I woke up Sunday and checked the Invisible Children Web site to see how other cities had been doing. There was still a significant number that hadn't been rescued. There was also a live feed from the headquarter in San Diego where we could watch and find out about what was going on around the world. I started watching....and soon I was hooked.
And then I heard the story of Chicago. Chicago had started out strong; 3,000 participants. But a few minutes into the march, torrential downpours. The number dropped to 100. The participants were standing under a bridge, then spent the night in a Tunnel. The number went back up to 400. They stayed at a student center, then moved to a church. And no rescuer in sight!
I was watching the continuous call on the live feed for volunteers to drive up to Chicago and for all of us to contact potential rescuers. I had planned on going to a concert that night but what was more important? I'm not necessarily close to Chicago, but it's a doable driving distance. I thought about it a little more and then, I just went. I got in my car and several hours later, I was in Chicago - in time to crash on the floor next to hundreds of other volunteers. The next morning, we moved out to Federal Plaza. We were writing more letters while the organizers were trying to figure out a new way to reach potential rescuer. Almost all cities had been rescued by now. We were waiting on a few. Rescue riders were leaving the rescued cities and driving to the ones that were still waiting.
I had to leave a few hours later; I had to get back to work. But I was thinking, I didn't really have much going on this week - at least not after Monday. Monday night was a program I couldn't miss, which is why I decided to head back to work. But Tuesday, I only had a 1:1 with my supervisor; Wednesday a team meeting and that was it for the week. It's the week before finals and my staff and students are all busy preparing for finals. My annual report was done. I really couldn't see a reason why I couldn't head back to Chicago after Monday night.
Well, my supervisor saw it differently. She didn't really say no - but she said it was a really bad time for me to leave the building right now (As If? Last weekend was bad because it was the last weekend before Finals, so everyone was out partying and we had a transport to the hospital and another documentation...but now it's really quiet) and that she would let me make that decision but she thinks I'm a good enough professional to make the right decision.
Seriously!?! If she didn't want me to go, just say no. Then I'll be frustrated but I'll get over it. Don't play these stupid mind games with me. I know she didn't want me to go.
Well, I didn't go and I've regretted it ever since. But I'm going off on a tangent; this post was supposed to be about Invisible Children.
Here's what I love about Invisible Children: it's what my living learning community is all about; it's about making change, finding something you're passionate about and standing up for it. The three filmmakers went to Uganda in search of a story and found a passion and a cause that they've been working for ever since! That's exactly what I want my students to learn/experience (well, maybe not to that extent but you know what I mean).
And the guys have developed a movement that allows students in high school and college to get involved and make a difference. I've never seen so many students become so passionate about an issue. Raising money, sleeping outside, talking to policy makers, ....
Seven days later, the group in Chicago was still going strong this morning. They headed up to Oprah's studios early in the morning (they did a song/dance in front of Oprah's studios yesterday...it was amazing...you should check it out the video from one of the practices: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MC0hBf6wtI); today they built a line all around Oprah's studios. Oprah saw them as she came in and was curious what was going on. In spite of all of our efforts, she herself hadn't heard about The Rescue yet. All of our communication hadn't gone past her PR staff.
A few minutes later, the three filmmakers found themselves in a meeting with Oprah; Oprah changed around her show and Invisible Children Chicago - the last city - was RESCUED!
AHHHH, Oprah is on right now. I gotta watch this!!!!
If you haven't watched Invisible Children - The Rough Cut yet, go to http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3166797753930210643 and watch the 55 minute documentary that started it all. Then, go to http://therescue.invisiblechildren.com and check out the 30 minute documentary about The Rescue.
So on April 25th, one of my friends and I grabbed our sleeping bags and drove to one of the cities participating in The Rescue. We met up with several hundred volunteers at the Abduction spot. After some waiting, we split up into groups of 20; each group had a long rope that participants held on to; and then we started marching to our LRA Camp. We sat up camp, wrote letters to senators and other people of cultural or political influence, listened to music, hung out an waited...
What were we waiting for? To be rescued!
To be rescued, we had to be covered by a major media outlet and a person of cultural or political significance had to come and read The Rescue anthem.
Our city was rescued Saturday evening. We had planned on spending the night; and a large group of people still stuck around, spent the night and then marched past the media outlets in the morning to get some more coverage - but my friend decided that she had too much work to do, so we headed back home.
I woke up Sunday and checked the Invisible Children Web site to see how other cities had been doing. There was still a significant number that hadn't been rescued. There was also a live feed from the headquarter in San Diego where we could watch and find out about what was going on around the world. I started watching....and soon I was hooked.
And then I heard the story of Chicago. Chicago had started out strong; 3,000 participants. But a few minutes into the march, torrential downpours. The number dropped to 100. The participants were standing under a bridge, then spent the night in a Tunnel. The number went back up to 400. They stayed at a student center, then moved to a church. And no rescuer in sight!
I was watching the continuous call on the live feed for volunteers to drive up to Chicago and for all of us to contact potential rescuers. I had planned on going to a concert that night but what was more important? I'm not necessarily close to Chicago, but it's a doable driving distance. I thought about it a little more and then, I just went. I got in my car and several hours later, I was in Chicago - in time to crash on the floor next to hundreds of other volunteers. The next morning, we moved out to Federal Plaza. We were writing more letters while the organizers were trying to figure out a new way to reach potential rescuer. Almost all cities had been rescued by now. We were waiting on a few. Rescue riders were leaving the rescued cities and driving to the ones that were still waiting.
I had to leave a few hours later; I had to get back to work. But I was thinking, I didn't really have much going on this week - at least not after Monday. Monday night was a program I couldn't miss, which is why I decided to head back to work. But Tuesday, I only had a 1:1 with my supervisor; Wednesday a team meeting and that was it for the week. It's the week before finals and my staff and students are all busy preparing for finals. My annual report was done. I really couldn't see a reason why I couldn't head back to Chicago after Monday night.
Well, my supervisor saw it differently. She didn't really say no - but she said it was a really bad time for me to leave the building right now (As If? Last weekend was bad because it was the last weekend before Finals, so everyone was out partying and we had a transport to the hospital and another documentation...but now it's really quiet) and that she would let me make that decision but she thinks I'm a good enough professional to make the right decision.
Seriously!?! If she didn't want me to go, just say no. Then I'll be frustrated but I'll get over it. Don't play these stupid mind games with me. I know she didn't want me to go.
Well, I didn't go and I've regretted it ever since. But I'm going off on a tangent; this post was supposed to be about Invisible Children.
Here's what I love about Invisible Children: it's what my living learning community is all about; it's about making change, finding something you're passionate about and standing up for it. The three filmmakers went to Uganda in search of a story and found a passion and a cause that they've been working for ever since! That's exactly what I want my students to learn/experience (well, maybe not to that extent but you know what I mean).
And the guys have developed a movement that allows students in high school and college to get involved and make a difference. I've never seen so many students become so passionate about an issue. Raising money, sleeping outside, talking to policy makers, ....
Seven days later, the group in Chicago was still going strong this morning. They headed up to Oprah's studios early in the morning (they did a song/dance in front of Oprah's studios yesterday...it was amazing...you should check it out the video from one of the practices: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MC0hBf6wtI); today they built a line all around Oprah's studios. Oprah saw them as she came in and was curious what was going on. In spite of all of our efforts, she herself hadn't heard about The Rescue yet. All of our communication hadn't gone past her PR staff.
A few minutes later, the three filmmakers found themselves in a meeting with Oprah; Oprah changed around her show and Invisible Children Chicago - the last city - was RESCUED!
AHHHH, Oprah is on right now. I gotta watch this!!!!
The interview - Part 3
I know, I know, I've kept you waiting for quite some time. But this week blogging just wasn't the first thing on my mind - Invisible Children's The Rescue has been. If you don't know what I'm talking about, go to www.invisiblechildren.com right NOW...and if you read this before Friday, May 1st at 4 pm, make sure to watch Oprah!!! As we like to say at Invisible Children, "It's going to be EPIC."
But more about that in my next entry....
So back to the interview. I got the offer! Right then and there - at the end of my interview day. They asked me to step out for a few minutes while they were looking at the forms. Then, they asked me to come back in for a few follow-up questions and THEN I got the offer! :)
And yes, I accept. I liked this school, I liked the position, I love the area it's in...so why wouldn't I? I have a friend who works there; I know someone else who will start working there in the Fall.
This was the easiest job search process I've been through - well, I've only been through two...LoL. But seriously, I only had one on-campus interview and it worked out; how awesome is that?
So now I just have a few weeks here, then my month and a half vacation and then it's off to a new job and a new school. :)
But more about that in my next entry....
So back to the interview. I got the offer! Right then and there - at the end of my interview day. They asked me to step out for a few minutes while they were looking at the forms. Then, they asked me to come back in for a few follow-up questions and THEN I got the offer! :)
And yes, I accept. I liked this school, I liked the position, I love the area it's in...so why wouldn't I? I have a friend who works there; I know someone else who will start working there in the Fall.
This was the easiest job search process I've been through - well, I've only been through two...LoL. But seriously, I only had one on-campus interview and it worked out; how awesome is that?
So now I just have a few weeks here, then my month and a half vacation and then it's off to a new job and a new school. :)
Thursday, April 23, 2009
The Interview - Part 2
I'm sure you've all been waiting anxiously to hear how my interview went, so here we go...
One of my least favorite moments of on-campus interviews is when you get off the airplane and walk toward baggage claim looking for the person that is supposed to pick you up. It's just nerve-racking. Will you find them? Will you make a fool out of yourself? You don't want to look around too anxious or scared because what kind of first impression would that make. But you also don't want to walk along too confidently or they won't realize you're "the candidate" and you may miss them. My heart always starts beating like crazy at these times - it's like when you're at Placement and are sitting in the Waiting Room. Just thinking about that makes me nervous...LoL.
Anyway, I found the staff members picking me up. We got my luggage. I was trying very hard to make small talk - after all, I wanted to make a good impression. I can be rather quiet and introverted when I don't know people; so it takes some effort to come up with topics to talk about and remember that I shouldn't just stand there quietly.
That evening, one of the staff members took me out to dinner and showed me the area. Afterwards, I called one of my friends from grad school who works at that institution and we met up and hung out for a while. I hadn't seen her in years and it was wonderful to catch up. We kept thinking/dreaming about what it were like if we both worked at the same institution - and then I had to stop myself from getting too excited because after all, I needed to get the job first.
I was staying in a vacant Area Coordinator apartment, which was nice because it allowed me to see what the apartment I'd live in could look like.
The next day, I got up early and got ready for the interview. Another moment I don't like - the waiting in the apartment to be picked up. You just sit there and get progressively more nervous. AHHHH!!!
I got a campus tour, interviewed with different groups of people (Residence Life, Housing, Campus Partners, RAs) - I really enjoyed the interview with the RAs. They just had a lot of energy and enthusiasm and were "fun" to talk to.
I soon realized that I could really work there. Not everything would be perfect - but I have long ago given up on the idea of finding the "perfect" job. I don't think that exists. In every job, there will be some things that you'll love and others that you aren't that fond of. The question is whether there are enough things you like and enjoy doing to weigh out the ones you don't love that much.
The position is called an Area Coordinator but it is basically a Hall Director. Why do we call things differently at each institution? Do we just try to make things confusing? But I guess that's a topic for another blog. So anyway, I'd be supervising a staff, managing a building or area, working with committees, doing some judicial - exactly the type of position that one of my colleagues would consider a "step down" for me but also exactly the things I enjoy doing. There's also a chance I may get to work with RHA and NRHH and if you've been following the blog, you know that I LOVE doing that. :)
I know I'd enjoy living there. I'm a workaholic, but one of the few things that can get me away from work is the beach. And I'd only be a few miles from the beach. The department really values balance and encourages that a lot - from making sure that after-hours, only the duty person gets called to allowing employees to take weekends off on a regular basis if they're not on call. What a change that would be!!! Even workaholic-me may have a life there.
And having nice weather all year long...how amazing would that be?
I tried hard throughout the day not to fall too much in love with the school. I just didn't want to get my hopes up and then possibly be disappointed.
It helps that, as much as I can be very impulsive and tend to fall in love quickly, I would also consider myself to be a realist. I knew I wouldn't love everything about this job. The department is very set on dressing business casual during office hours and we all know I don't like to dress up. Not being able to wear jeans and a nice shirt to the office will be a struggle. And they won't even let you wear nice flip flops or sandals. Come on!!! Oh well, I don't mind dressing up as much when it's warm out - and I guess I'll have to get used to that eventually anyway, right?
I'm not sure how I feel about their programming model. It's just very basic and leaves a lot of responsibility up to the RAs. I've really embraced the Residential Curriculum in the past two years and truly believe that we, as Master level professionals, should play an active role in program planning - but hey, these are things that can be changed, right? I mean I'll give "their way of doing things" a chance...and then, once I've gotten to know the institution and the department, I will start bringing in some suggestions for changes. I got the impression that the office is very open to change as it is still growing and developing - and come on, you know me, I love CHANGE. Haha.
My last part of the interview was a tour of the construction site of a new residence hall and let me tell you... WHOA BABY!!! That building will be AMAZING! And in everything they did, they thought about what would work best for the staff and for programming. To work in such a facility....
One of my least favorite moments of on-campus interviews is when you get off the airplane and walk toward baggage claim looking for the person that is supposed to pick you up. It's just nerve-racking. Will you find them? Will you make a fool out of yourself? You don't want to look around too anxious or scared because what kind of first impression would that make. But you also don't want to walk along too confidently or they won't realize you're "the candidate" and you may miss them. My heart always starts beating like crazy at these times - it's like when you're at Placement and are sitting in the Waiting Room. Just thinking about that makes me nervous...LoL.
Anyway, I found the staff members picking me up. We got my luggage. I was trying very hard to make small talk - after all, I wanted to make a good impression. I can be rather quiet and introverted when I don't know people; so it takes some effort to come up with topics to talk about and remember that I shouldn't just stand there quietly.
That evening, one of the staff members took me out to dinner and showed me the area. Afterwards, I called one of my friends from grad school who works at that institution and we met up and hung out for a while. I hadn't seen her in years and it was wonderful to catch up. We kept thinking/dreaming about what it were like if we both worked at the same institution - and then I had to stop myself from getting too excited because after all, I needed to get the job first.
I was staying in a vacant Area Coordinator apartment, which was nice because it allowed me to see what the apartment I'd live in could look like.
The next day, I got up early and got ready for the interview. Another moment I don't like - the waiting in the apartment to be picked up. You just sit there and get progressively more nervous. AHHHH!!!
I got a campus tour, interviewed with different groups of people (Residence Life, Housing, Campus Partners, RAs) - I really enjoyed the interview with the RAs. They just had a lot of energy and enthusiasm and were "fun" to talk to.
I soon realized that I could really work there. Not everything would be perfect - but I have long ago given up on the idea of finding the "perfect" job. I don't think that exists. In every job, there will be some things that you'll love and others that you aren't that fond of. The question is whether there are enough things you like and enjoy doing to weigh out the ones you don't love that much.
The position is called an Area Coordinator but it is basically a Hall Director. Why do we call things differently at each institution? Do we just try to make things confusing? But I guess that's a topic for another blog. So anyway, I'd be supervising a staff, managing a building or area, working with committees, doing some judicial - exactly the type of position that one of my colleagues would consider a "step down" for me but also exactly the things I enjoy doing. There's also a chance I may get to work with RHA and NRHH and if you've been following the blog, you know that I LOVE doing that. :)
I know I'd enjoy living there. I'm a workaholic, but one of the few things that can get me away from work is the beach. And I'd only be a few miles from the beach. The department really values balance and encourages that a lot - from making sure that after-hours, only the duty person gets called to allowing employees to take weekends off on a regular basis if they're not on call. What a change that would be!!! Even workaholic-me may have a life there.
And having nice weather all year long...how amazing would that be?
I tried hard throughout the day not to fall too much in love with the school. I just didn't want to get my hopes up and then possibly be disappointed.
It helps that, as much as I can be very impulsive and tend to fall in love quickly, I would also consider myself to be a realist. I knew I wouldn't love everything about this job. The department is very set on dressing business casual during office hours and we all know I don't like to dress up. Not being able to wear jeans and a nice shirt to the office will be a struggle. And they won't even let you wear nice flip flops or sandals. Come on!!! Oh well, I don't mind dressing up as much when it's warm out - and I guess I'll have to get used to that eventually anyway, right?
I'm not sure how I feel about their programming model. It's just very basic and leaves a lot of responsibility up to the RAs. I've really embraced the Residential Curriculum in the past two years and truly believe that we, as Master level professionals, should play an active role in program planning - but hey, these are things that can be changed, right? I mean I'll give "their way of doing things" a chance...and then, once I've gotten to know the institution and the department, I will start bringing in some suggestions for changes. I got the impression that the office is very open to change as it is still growing and developing - and come on, you know me, I love CHANGE. Haha.
My last part of the interview was a tour of the construction site of a new residence hall and let me tell you... WHOA BABY!!! That building will be AMAZING! And in everything they did, they thought about what would work best for the staff and for programming. To work in such a facility....
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Why do bad things always happen on/around my birthday?
I know, I know. I'm in the middle of telling you all about "the interview" and now I suddenly post this entry about a completely different topic. No worries, the interview story will continue...soon.
But I had to get something else off my chest....
Why do bad things always happen on/around my birthday? Over the past few years, it just seems that bad things always happen just around this time of the year. And then it's my birthday and people expect me to be super happy and excited...and I can't because there's too much bad stuff going on. So in the last few years, I've started trying to ignore my birthday. I don't really celebrate; I avoid people so I don't have to hear them wishing me a happy birthday and expect me to be all happy/cheerful in return when I'm just wondering what the next bad thing is that will happen.
I'm usually not superstitious and yes, my brain definitely tells me that it's just been a coincidence that some bad things have happened around my birthday, but still....
So anyway, this year...
Well, there was the whole car issue (see "The Interview - Part I"). Granted, it didn't happen ON my birthday but four days before. I did have the pleasure though to dealing with it ON my birthday. I woke up early to call AAA to have my car towed to the dealership. Then, I was on the phone with the dealership several times throughout the day trying to figure out what was going on (they had to drain the tank and clean out the fuel system and all that - they thought there could be more damage, fortunately they at least "think" now that there isn't...they're not sure though and I'm supposed to keep an eye on that); I got to pay $279 for all this; I met with the police and filed a police report.
I had wanted to go to the movies on my birthday. I had scheduled some late-evening evaluation meetings with my RAs, but there was this long break in the middle of the day. So I figured, since I was working in the evening, why not take a couple hours off and go to the movies. The Hannah Montana movie is out. I know, childish, cheesy, all this...still, I enjoy the Disney channel and I'm sure I'll enjoy this movie. So yeah, that was my plan. But then, without my car, I couldn't go because it wasn't playing in town and I didn't have anyone who'd drive me to the next town or who'd want to go to the movie with me. So much for having fun on your birthday....
I was in a pretty crappy mood but I kept telling myself, "Don't worry. At least you'll have fun this weekend." Because for this weekend, one of my friends and I had planned to go to Denver for a concert and just to get away from here and have fun. That was supposed to be my birthday celebration! It'd also be the first real vacation I'm taking this semester. Needless to say, I've been looking forward to this all semester!!!
So anyway, I wake up this morning with a killer headache. Great! I drag myself to the office; do work - one thing after the other keeps going wrong. Residents telling Housing I'm saying things I never said (actually I said exactly the opposite); Housing (instead of calling me to check) calls my supervisor and then I get that lovely phone call from my supervisor. I'm still dealing with key issues that started at the beginning of April. Students messing up RSVP numbers for our banquet on Monday and me having to call and change those - and then receiving fun e-mails that are suggesting "nicely" that I'm an idiot. Me trying to figure out where exactly the concert tomorrow is and being unable to do so - being transferred back and forth between the same offices until I finally gave up and figured I'll just go there, drive around and try to find it.
The whole time, the thing that cheers me up: tomorrow you'll be far away from here and having a great time!!!!
And then I get a phone call from my friend. It's supposed to snow tomorrow in Denver and her parents are forbidden her to fly. What!?! We can't cancel anything at this point. Yes, it's supposed to snow - and if it gets really bad there's a chance that our flight will be cancelled. But there's also a chance it won't. And me, for my part, am very willing to take that chance. Okay, so if we make it to Denver and it snows a lot, we may not be able to do all the things we wanted to do. But we'll still be far away from here, in a hotel with a swimming pool, relaxing and having a great time! Isn't that worth it? I mean, we already paid for all this...
And yes, if it gets really bad, they'll cancel the flight and we won't be able to go. But let's at least try and go to the airport and see what happens.
Argh! I can't believe this is happening. I'm still going to Denver. But my friend doesn't want to make her parents angry; so it looks like my fabulous birthday celebration that I've been looking forward to for months will be a very lonely adventure.
I guess we jinxed ourselves by calling it "my birthday celebration."
But I had to get something else off my chest....
Why do bad things always happen on/around my birthday? Over the past few years, it just seems that bad things always happen just around this time of the year. And then it's my birthday and people expect me to be super happy and excited...and I can't because there's too much bad stuff going on. So in the last few years, I've started trying to ignore my birthday. I don't really celebrate; I avoid people so I don't have to hear them wishing me a happy birthday and expect me to be all happy/cheerful in return when I'm just wondering what the next bad thing is that will happen.
I'm usually not superstitious and yes, my brain definitely tells me that it's just been a coincidence that some bad things have happened around my birthday, but still....
So anyway, this year...
Well, there was the whole car issue (see "The Interview - Part I"). Granted, it didn't happen ON my birthday but four days before. I did have the pleasure though to dealing with it ON my birthday. I woke up early to call AAA to have my car towed to the dealership. Then, I was on the phone with the dealership several times throughout the day trying to figure out what was going on (they had to drain the tank and clean out the fuel system and all that - they thought there could be more damage, fortunately they at least "think" now that there isn't...they're not sure though and I'm supposed to keep an eye on that); I got to pay $279 for all this; I met with the police and filed a police report.
I had wanted to go to the movies on my birthday. I had scheduled some late-evening evaluation meetings with my RAs, but there was this long break in the middle of the day. So I figured, since I was working in the evening, why not take a couple hours off and go to the movies. The Hannah Montana movie is out. I know, childish, cheesy, all this...still, I enjoy the Disney channel and I'm sure I'll enjoy this movie. So yeah, that was my plan. But then, without my car, I couldn't go because it wasn't playing in town and I didn't have anyone who'd drive me to the next town or who'd want to go to the movie with me. So much for having fun on your birthday....
I was in a pretty crappy mood but I kept telling myself, "Don't worry. At least you'll have fun this weekend." Because for this weekend, one of my friends and I had planned to go to Denver for a concert and just to get away from here and have fun. That was supposed to be my birthday celebration! It'd also be the first real vacation I'm taking this semester. Needless to say, I've been looking forward to this all semester!!!
So anyway, I wake up this morning with a killer headache. Great! I drag myself to the office; do work - one thing after the other keeps going wrong. Residents telling Housing I'm saying things I never said (actually I said exactly the opposite); Housing (instead of calling me to check) calls my supervisor and then I get that lovely phone call from my supervisor. I'm still dealing with key issues that started at the beginning of April. Students messing up RSVP numbers for our banquet on Monday and me having to call and change those - and then receiving fun e-mails that are suggesting "nicely" that I'm an idiot. Me trying to figure out where exactly the concert tomorrow is and being unable to do so - being transferred back and forth between the same offices until I finally gave up and figured I'll just go there, drive around and try to find it.
The whole time, the thing that cheers me up: tomorrow you'll be far away from here and having a great time!!!!
And then I get a phone call from my friend. It's supposed to snow tomorrow in Denver and her parents are forbidden her to fly. What!?! We can't cancel anything at this point. Yes, it's supposed to snow - and if it gets really bad there's a chance that our flight will be cancelled. But there's also a chance it won't. And me, for my part, am very willing to take that chance. Okay, so if we make it to Denver and it snows a lot, we may not be able to do all the things we wanted to do. But we'll still be far away from here, in a hotel with a swimming pool, relaxing and having a great time! Isn't that worth it? I mean, we already paid for all this...
And yes, if it gets really bad, they'll cancel the flight and we won't be able to go. But let's at least try and go to the airport and see what happens.
Argh! I can't believe this is happening. I'm still going to Denver. But my friend doesn't want to make her parents angry; so it looks like my fabulous birthday celebration that I've been looking forward to for months will be a very lonely adventure.
I guess we jinxed ourselves by calling it "my birthday celebration."
The interview - Part 1
I got in my car to drive to Wal-mart (I don't like Wal-mart...I definitely don't want to support Wal-mart...but when you live in a small college town, you don't have many other options for some quick shopping). I noticed the motor sounded funny. I turned down the music. Yes, this definitely didn't sound normal. I pull over. What was wrong? Oh, the cap to my gas tank was open. Strange! I hadn't gotten gas in at least two or three weeks; there's no way it could have been open for that long without me noticing. And it's not like it just opens by itself.
I closed it and got back in my car. Was the weird sound still there? I couldn't really tell. I made it to Wal-mart and back, parked my car and went back to my apartment.
That night, I packed for my on-campus interview. I tried to pack light, after all I was going for only one and half days. But - with different shoes and interview outfits - it wasn't an easy task. Finally, I had everything and it was time to go to bed.
The next morning, I got up early. I showered, straightened my hair, threw a few more things in my suitcase. It was early, so I took my time, played around on the computer. Finally I got my stuff and walked out to the parking lot. I got in my car, turned the key and...
The motor started but it sounded really strange. Then it died. Various warning lights came on. AHHHH!!! Okay, let's not panic. I took a deep breath, turned the key again - same thing. Oh man, what am I gonna do? I looked at the time. I had about an hour and a half before I had to be at the airport - it takes an hour to get there. What could I do? There was no way I could get AAA to come and look at my car in time - and them fixing it in time - no way. Who could I call? I hate calling people. I hate having to ask for favors. I started dialing numbers.... The first few people weren't there. Then, one of my colleagues picked up. I felt horrible having to ask him, but what else could I do?
I just made it to the airport. I was trying to concentrate on the upcoming interview and forget about my car. But how could I not think about it? What could be wrong with it? I remembered that the cap for the gas tank had been open. Could someone have poured something in my gas tank? That would be so mean! But then, I couldn't think of any other explanation. And why else would the gas tank be open???
I closed it and got back in my car. Was the weird sound still there? I couldn't really tell. I made it to Wal-mart and back, parked my car and went back to my apartment.
That night, I packed for my on-campus interview. I tried to pack light, after all I was going for only one and half days. But - with different shoes and interview outfits - it wasn't an easy task. Finally, I had everything and it was time to go to bed.
The next morning, I got up early. I showered, straightened my hair, threw a few more things in my suitcase. It was early, so I took my time, played around on the computer. Finally I got my stuff and walked out to the parking lot. I got in my car, turned the key and...
The motor started but it sounded really strange. Then it died. Various warning lights came on. AHHHH!!! Okay, let's not panic. I took a deep breath, turned the key again - same thing. Oh man, what am I gonna do? I looked at the time. I had about an hour and a half before I had to be at the airport - it takes an hour to get there. What could I do? There was no way I could get AAA to come and look at my car in time - and them fixing it in time - no way. Who could I call? I hate calling people. I hate having to ask for favors. I started dialing numbers.... The first few people weren't there. Then, one of my colleagues picked up. I felt horrible having to ask him, but what else could I do?
I just made it to the airport. I was trying to concentrate on the upcoming interview and forget about my car. But how could I not think about it? What could be wrong with it? I remembered that the cap for the gas tank had been open. Could someone have poured something in my gas tank? That would be so mean! But then, I couldn't think of any other explanation. And why else would the gas tank be open???
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Finally... but then again...
Finally something is going right in my life. The school that has offered me an on-campus interview and that was looking into my visa status got back to me and told me that it shouldn't be a problem. *Sigh* I'm so relieved. I still haven't heard from anyone else but I have one interview and it's for a school I really really liked. If this could just work out....
But then I had an "interesting" 1:1 with my supervisor this week. She asked how the job search was going and I gave her the update - I'm getting really sick of having to relive all these issues over and over again - and then she started asking me if I was applying for more jobs and what I was doing to make sure I get a job. I think she believes that I don't take this job search seriously enough. But to honest, I just can't do it anymore. Everytime I am told by an institution that they cannot hire me because of my visa status, a little of the love I have for this country and working in Student Affairs vanishes. I'm not sure how many more rejections I can handle...because it's not like they gave me a fair chance to apply and then maybe I don't get the job because there was a more qualified candidate or someone that just "fit" better at that institution - I could handle that - but not even being given a chance, not even being able to prove that I would be a great employee...it's not fair! It feels like I'm not just being turned down from a job, it feels like I'm not wanted in this country.
Yes, it's my own fault. I wanted to move her. I fell in love with working with college students and wanted to pursue a career doing what I love. But I've also given up a lot - I don't get to see my family very often; I rarely see my three best friends. It's hard living on your own, having to deal with everything on your own.
I chose this and I can handle it, but when I'm constantly being turned down, when it feels like this country doesn't want me...that's just too much.
If this on-campus interview works out, FABULOUS. If another school I like calls me and offers me an on-campus interview and it works out, GREAT. But if it doesn't, then maybe it just wasn't meant to happen. Because honestly, I don't want to do this anymore. I'm tired, tired of trying, tired of fighting. I just want to crawl into bed and not think and not have to deal with life anymore.
I was okay after I heard from the school that offered me the on-campus. I was more than okay, I was thrilled. I was excited. I had to stop myself from dreaming about that new job already, making plans about moving there, thinking about the fun times we'd have when my friends would visit. I was living a dream...
And now, after a 1:1 with my supervisor, I'm sitting here, tears in my eyes, ready to give up. Isn't that the opposite of what 1:1's should do?
But then I had an "interesting" 1:1 with my supervisor this week. She asked how the job search was going and I gave her the update - I'm getting really sick of having to relive all these issues over and over again - and then she started asking me if I was applying for more jobs and what I was doing to make sure I get a job. I think she believes that I don't take this job search seriously enough. But to honest, I just can't do it anymore. Everytime I am told by an institution that they cannot hire me because of my visa status, a little of the love I have for this country and working in Student Affairs vanishes. I'm not sure how many more rejections I can handle...because it's not like they gave me a fair chance to apply and then maybe I don't get the job because there was a more qualified candidate or someone that just "fit" better at that institution - I could handle that - but not even being given a chance, not even being able to prove that I would be a great employee...it's not fair! It feels like I'm not just being turned down from a job, it feels like I'm not wanted in this country.
Yes, it's my own fault. I wanted to move her. I fell in love with working with college students and wanted to pursue a career doing what I love. But I've also given up a lot - I don't get to see my family very often; I rarely see my three best friends. It's hard living on your own, having to deal with everything on your own.
I chose this and I can handle it, but when I'm constantly being turned down, when it feels like this country doesn't want me...that's just too much.
If this on-campus interview works out, FABULOUS. If another school I like calls me and offers me an on-campus interview and it works out, GREAT. But if it doesn't, then maybe it just wasn't meant to happen. Because honestly, I don't want to do this anymore. I'm tired, tired of trying, tired of fighting. I just want to crawl into bed and not think and not have to deal with life anymore.
I was okay after I heard from the school that offered me the on-campus. I was more than okay, I was thrilled. I was excited. I had to stop myself from dreaming about that new job already, making plans about moving there, thinking about the fun times we'd have when my friends would visit. I was living a dream...
And now, after a 1:1 with my supervisor, I'm sitting here, tears in my eyes, ready to give up. Isn't that the opposite of what 1:1's should do?
Saturday, April 4, 2009
I'm seriously scared...
I don't even know where to start...
I came back from ACPA three days ago and it feels like it's been a lifetime ago. Toward the end of ACPA and when I first got back, I was worrying about what type of positions I should consider - would it be okay if I stayed with a Hall Director-level position or should I try and get a mid-manager position? I lost sleep over it; I called friends, colleagues and mentors and asked for advice; I kept going over job responsibilities; and and and. I tried to figure out which positions would be my top choices - if they called for an on-campus interview - so I'd know which ones I wanted to go to and if there were any where I wouldn't accept an on-campus interview.
Now all this seems stupid and I'm just hoping to get a job...
But before I jump to what's going on now, I do want to fill you in on the last few days.
There definitely weren't as many positions at ACPA as there had been in past years, especially if I looked for mid-manager level positions. I applied for a few mid-manager positions - many of them at smaller institutions, private, some religiously affiliated. I also applied for Hall Director positions, some where I would be supervising graduate students (something I already do here) and some where I wouldn't. I thought interviews went alright - well apparently the one at the school that initially told me that they weren't doing second interviews but then did those didn't go so well (see my previous post) but other than that, I got a number of second interviews and other schools seemed interested (and I actually believe that they did not do second interviews). But what I was finding was that either loved the institution and the people I would be working with or I found a postition that would be a good next step in my career.
Would it be such a bad idea to work as a Hall Director? Even if I didn't have grads to supervise anymore, there are still things I could learn from these positions. I'd get to know a different institution, a different department, a new way of doing things. I would see how a more traditional Residence Life department functions, one that doesn't combine Residence Life and Academic Advising. If I want to be a Director of Residence Life, wouldn't that be a good experience?
The more I thought about it, the more I realized that I really wanted to make my personal life and my happiness a priority. I've always made every decision based on what would be best for my career. I picked the positions, the schools - not the places I wanted to live. And while I love my job, I don't love living here. I'm a workaholic and I'd probably be a workaholic everywhere - but when there aren't many things to do around here for me (at least not things I really enjoy doing), it's even easier to just get stuck in the office every evening. So for once, I want to move to a place that I'll enjoy living in. But I also don't want to commit professional suicide. Would I be able to explain at a future interview why I decided to stay in a similar position or even "take a step back"?
One of my colleagues has been giving me a hard time, saying that I'm selling myself short and that I'm making a mistake. It's so frustrating. He just doesn't seem to understand what's important to me. For the past three years, colleagues have been giving me a hard time about not having balance in my life - now that I'm trying to make a decision based on my happiness and personal life, they're once again giving me a hard time. Argh!
I called friends, colleagues and mentors. While most seemed hesitant to advise me to take a position where I wouldn't be supervising grads and would "just" be a Hall Director, they also didn't say that I shouldn't do that. And I get it - supervising grads would be a good experience if I want to move on to a position supervising full-time staff. But I've done this for the past three years and while it may seem a little backwards, it doesn't take that experience away from me.
I just feel like I've been on this fast track - moving up quickly. I was an RA for only one year - then became a Senior RA for my building, so I didn't have residents anymore but worked with the staff. The following year, I was the Senior RA for the entire campus, so I didn't even have a building staff anymore. I enjoyed the positions and liked the additional responsibilities, but I missed having residents, I missed being part of a staff. Then, I was a grad student; first an assistant to a coordinator, which was great because I got experience working with five very different housing areas; then I ran the Family Housing area, again a great and unique experience but I just never had my own traditional student staff, the experience of running a traditional residence hall, doing judicial, building community and so on. My first full-time position, I got to supervise grads, I academically advised - I've had a great experience but I've also been stressed all the time. I've always felt like I haven't had enough time for my staff and for the students. I don't make it to as many programs as I like. And after three years, I'm just tired. Not just the not-having-gotten-enough-sleep tired but the I-don't-want-to-get-up-and-go-to-work tired. I don't want to be tired anymore. I want to have time to focus on the things I enjoy doing. I want to have time for my staff and my students. I want to have a traditional Residence Life experience.
But like I said at the beginning of this post, all these worries seem pointless now. I just want/need a job. I've had two schools contact me and offer me on-campus interviews. Once I told them that I'm not a US citizen but am here on an H1B visa, they had to check with their Human Resources Department - and after doing that, called me back to tell me that they would not be able to hire me. It's not their fault - one of them seemed really sad when she told me. If HR says no, it's no.
I told one of my supervisors and he couldn't believe it. Americans rarely understand how hard it is to find a job when you're not a citizen or permanent resident. And I understand that the US needs to be strict with their immigration laws - but wouldn't you think they'd make an exception for someone who has a bachelor's and master's degree from American institutions and has lived here for 9 years.
One school is currently checking into whether or not they'd be able to hire me. They said they don't think it should be a problem, but after having gotten a "no" from two other schools, I'm really nervous. I would absolutely love to work at that school. I really enjoyed my interviews with them. I like the position. And I LOVE the city I'd be living in. I even know someone who works there...it'd just be perfect. Awww, I'm so nervous. And if I get a "no" from them, I'm not even sure if anyone else will offer me an on-campus interview. My list is getting shorter and shorter...
I'm seriously scared.
I came back from ACPA three days ago and it feels like it's been a lifetime ago. Toward the end of ACPA and when I first got back, I was worrying about what type of positions I should consider - would it be okay if I stayed with a Hall Director-level position or should I try and get a mid-manager position? I lost sleep over it; I called friends, colleagues and mentors and asked for advice; I kept going over job responsibilities; and and and. I tried to figure out which positions would be my top choices - if they called for an on-campus interview - so I'd know which ones I wanted to go to and if there were any where I wouldn't accept an on-campus interview.
Now all this seems stupid and I'm just hoping to get a job...
But before I jump to what's going on now, I do want to fill you in on the last few days.
There definitely weren't as many positions at ACPA as there had been in past years, especially if I looked for mid-manager level positions. I applied for a few mid-manager positions - many of them at smaller institutions, private, some religiously affiliated. I also applied for Hall Director positions, some where I would be supervising graduate students (something I already do here) and some where I wouldn't. I thought interviews went alright - well apparently the one at the school that initially told me that they weren't doing second interviews but then did those didn't go so well (see my previous post) but other than that, I got a number of second interviews and other schools seemed interested (and I actually believe that they did not do second interviews). But what I was finding was that either loved the institution and the people I would be working with or I found a postition that would be a good next step in my career.
Would it be such a bad idea to work as a Hall Director? Even if I didn't have grads to supervise anymore, there are still things I could learn from these positions. I'd get to know a different institution, a different department, a new way of doing things. I would see how a more traditional Residence Life department functions, one that doesn't combine Residence Life and Academic Advising. If I want to be a Director of Residence Life, wouldn't that be a good experience?
The more I thought about it, the more I realized that I really wanted to make my personal life and my happiness a priority. I've always made every decision based on what would be best for my career. I picked the positions, the schools - not the places I wanted to live. And while I love my job, I don't love living here. I'm a workaholic and I'd probably be a workaholic everywhere - but when there aren't many things to do around here for me (at least not things I really enjoy doing), it's even easier to just get stuck in the office every evening. So for once, I want to move to a place that I'll enjoy living in. But I also don't want to commit professional suicide. Would I be able to explain at a future interview why I decided to stay in a similar position or even "take a step back"?
One of my colleagues has been giving me a hard time, saying that I'm selling myself short and that I'm making a mistake. It's so frustrating. He just doesn't seem to understand what's important to me. For the past three years, colleagues have been giving me a hard time about not having balance in my life - now that I'm trying to make a decision based on my happiness and personal life, they're once again giving me a hard time. Argh!
I called friends, colleagues and mentors. While most seemed hesitant to advise me to take a position where I wouldn't be supervising grads and would "just" be a Hall Director, they also didn't say that I shouldn't do that. And I get it - supervising grads would be a good experience if I want to move on to a position supervising full-time staff. But I've done this for the past three years and while it may seem a little backwards, it doesn't take that experience away from me.
I just feel like I've been on this fast track - moving up quickly. I was an RA for only one year - then became a Senior RA for my building, so I didn't have residents anymore but worked with the staff. The following year, I was the Senior RA for the entire campus, so I didn't even have a building staff anymore. I enjoyed the positions and liked the additional responsibilities, but I missed having residents, I missed being part of a staff. Then, I was a grad student; first an assistant to a coordinator, which was great because I got experience working with five very different housing areas; then I ran the Family Housing area, again a great and unique experience but I just never had my own traditional student staff, the experience of running a traditional residence hall, doing judicial, building community and so on. My first full-time position, I got to supervise grads, I academically advised - I've had a great experience but I've also been stressed all the time. I've always felt like I haven't had enough time for my staff and for the students. I don't make it to as many programs as I like. And after three years, I'm just tired. Not just the not-having-gotten-enough-sleep tired but the I-don't-want-to-get-up-and-go-to-work tired. I don't want to be tired anymore. I want to have time to focus on the things I enjoy doing. I want to have time for my staff and my students. I want to have a traditional Residence Life experience.
But like I said at the beginning of this post, all these worries seem pointless now. I just want/need a job. I've had two schools contact me and offer me on-campus interviews. Once I told them that I'm not a US citizen but am here on an H1B visa, they had to check with their Human Resources Department - and after doing that, called me back to tell me that they would not be able to hire me. It's not their fault - one of them seemed really sad when she told me. If HR says no, it's no.
I told one of my supervisors and he couldn't believe it. Americans rarely understand how hard it is to find a job when you're not a citizen or permanent resident. And I understand that the US needs to be strict with their immigration laws - but wouldn't you think they'd make an exception for someone who has a bachelor's and master's degree from American institutions and has lived here for 9 years.
One school is currently checking into whether or not they'd be able to hire me. They said they don't think it should be a problem, but after having gotten a "no" from two other schools, I'm really nervous. I would absolutely love to work at that school. I really enjoyed my interviews with them. I like the position. And I LOVE the city I'd be living in. I even know someone who works there...it'd just be perfect. Awww, I'm so nervous. And if I get a "no" from them, I'm not even sure if anyone else will offer me an on-campus interview. My list is getting shorter and shorter...
I'm seriously scared.
Friday, April 3, 2009
Uh uh, not cool
So the CD I got from this school - I don't think it'll be opened.
At the end of my interview, I asked what their process looked like. And they told me that they were not planning on doing second interviews at the conference but would just return home, look through all their notes and then contact candidates in regards to on-campus interviews. I left the table in good spirits, thinking the interview had gone alright and being pretty excited about this opportunity.
Two days later, I noticed that another candidate was having a second interview with that school. What!?! At first I thought, maybe I'd been wrong. I mean, they had TOLD me that they were not planning on having second interviews. I started watching that table a little more closely. Oh yes, these candidates were definitely having one hour interviews (and mine had only been half an hour) and I was pretty sure I was recognizing candidates who had interviewed with them before.
Oh, so NOT cool!!!
If you don't like me, that's fine. But don't give me wrong information.
Oh well, ....
I'm back from ACPA and the job search has moved into the next stage: the on-campus/decision-making stage. NOT one of my favorite stages. But more about that later. (Sorry, it's just that it's late and I really need to go to bed and that next entry will probably be a rather lengthy one because there's a lot to talk about/process.)
At the end of my interview, I asked what their process looked like. And they told me that they were not planning on doing second interviews at the conference but would just return home, look through all their notes and then contact candidates in regards to on-campus interviews. I left the table in good spirits, thinking the interview had gone alright and being pretty excited about this opportunity.
Two days later, I noticed that another candidate was having a second interview with that school. What!?! At first I thought, maybe I'd been wrong. I mean, they had TOLD me that they were not planning on having second interviews. I started watching that table a little more closely. Oh yes, these candidates were definitely having one hour interviews (and mine had only been half an hour) and I was pretty sure I was recognizing candidates who had interviewed with them before.
Oh, so NOT cool!!!
If you don't like me, that's fine. But don't give me wrong information.
Oh well, ....
I'm back from ACPA and the job search has moved into the next stage: the on-campus/decision-making stage. NOT one of my favorite stages. But more about that later. (Sorry, it's just that it's late and I really need to go to bed and that next entry will probably be a rather lengthy one because there's a lot to talk about/process.)
Saturday, March 28, 2009
ACPA
I'm at ACPA and in the middle of job searching. I had four interviews today. I have a few more scheduled for the rest of placement. I've also dropped off four more resumes today. So overall, it's going alright. At least I'm finally focusing on job searching.
Everyone keeps asking me how the interviews have been going and I just don't know what to say. I have a really hard time judging how they go. I remember last time around, there were some interviews that I thought went really well and then I never heard from those institutions. So I'd rather not say anything this time. People also keep asking me what my top choices are - again, something I don't want to think about. I don't want to get too attached to a school, then not get an interview and be heart broken. There is one school that I'm really really interested in and I loved our interview this morning, but if I said that out loud it'd make it more real and then what if they don't invite me on campus? No, it's better to try and leave my options open, not get attached and then fall in love with schools ONLY IF they offer me an on-campus interview. I even got a CD from the school I liked with more information about them - I want to look at it really badly but I'm not going to until I hear from them again. I just couldn't handle it....
Everyone keeps asking me how the interviews have been going and I just don't know what to say. I have a really hard time judging how they go. I remember last time around, there were some interviews that I thought went really well and then I never heard from those institutions. So I'd rather not say anything this time. People also keep asking me what my top choices are - again, something I don't want to think about. I don't want to get too attached to a school, then not get an interview and be heart broken. There is one school that I'm really really interested in and I loved our interview this morning, but if I said that out loud it'd make it more real and then what if they don't invite me on campus? No, it's better to try and leave my options open, not get attached and then fall in love with schools ONLY IF they offer me an on-campus interview. I even got a CD from the school I liked with more information about them - I want to look at it really badly but I'm not going to until I hear from them again. I just couldn't handle it....
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Benefit Concert & ACPA
I apologize for not having posted in a while.
The Benefit Concert is over. After a few days of floating in seventh heaven, it's time to get back to reality. But I do want to gloat for a tiny little bit...hehe. We raised over $2,000 for Invisible Children, collected about 450 books and celebrated our success with over 150 guests at the Benefit Concert. The concert went relatively smoothly - a few frustrating moments, a few last-minute issues but we were able to handle everything well and nobody noticed. My volunteers were amazing. The a-cappella group was awesome and band sounded fabulous. I've had so many students come up to me and tell me that they now understand why I love this band and their music so much. Makes me want to say, "Told you so." Haha. All in all, a total success! I finally feel like I left that legacy I wanted to leave, had that final awesome event that now allows me to leave - knowing that I did what I came here to do.
We're not done with Invisible Children though. We found out about their national event - The Rescue - and decided to try and get a group of students to go to Cincinnati and participate. You should check it out at therescue.invisiblechildren.com. More info about this initiative coming soon.
So job searching....ahhh, the pain of my existence right now.
I had a phone interview this week. I hate phone interviews. I feel like my accent comes out more, then I become self-conscious and then I stop thinking about the question and start thinking about my accent. I make faces at myself because I think about what I just said and realize it sounded stupid; and then that throws me off even more. Argh!
I have six interviews lined up for ACPA. I haven't really had time to do any research on the institutions yet. I need to do that tonight. It's going to be a LONG night.
Okay, I should run. Keep your fingers crossed for me!
The Benefit Concert is over. After a few days of floating in seventh heaven, it's time to get back to reality. But I do want to gloat for a tiny little bit...hehe. We raised over $2,000 for Invisible Children, collected about 450 books and celebrated our success with over 150 guests at the Benefit Concert. The concert went relatively smoothly - a few frustrating moments, a few last-minute issues but we were able to handle everything well and nobody noticed. My volunteers were amazing. The a-cappella group was awesome and band sounded fabulous. I've had so many students come up to me and tell me that they now understand why I love this band and their music so much. Makes me want to say, "Told you so." Haha. All in all, a total success! I finally feel like I left that legacy I wanted to leave, had that final awesome event that now allows me to leave - knowing that I did what I came here to do.
We're not done with Invisible Children though. We found out about their national event - The Rescue - and decided to try and get a group of students to go to Cincinnati and participate. You should check it out at therescue.invisiblechildren.com. More info about this initiative coming soon.
So job searching....ahhh, the pain of my existence right now.
I had a phone interview this week. I hate phone interviews. I feel like my accent comes out more, then I become self-conscious and then I stop thinking about the question and start thinking about my accent. I make faces at myself because I think about what I just said and realize it sounded stupid; and then that throws me off even more. Argh!
I have six interviews lined up for ACPA. I haven't really had time to do any research on the institutions yet. I need to do that tonight. It's going to be a LONG night.
Okay, I should run. Keep your fingers crossed for me!
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Job Search and Concert Update
Countdown: 9 days until ACPA, 3 days until the Invisible Children Benefits Concert
I have a killer headache right now. I took a nap, hoping that it'll get better. It has not. :(
I haven't slept much in the past few days. Between getting ready for the concert and job searching, there just hasn't been much time for sleep. But things are slowly falling into place. My to do list for the concert is still considerable, but with some luck I may actually be able to get everything done in time. I was putting up posters with my co-chair today and a student, who saw us, said she was excited for the concert and would be coming. Yay! It seems that the word has gotten out there.
Things are also slowly falling into place on the job search front. I now have three interviews set up for ACPA. I also have one phone interview set up.
All those interviews are for Hall Director-type positions. I've been applying for a mix between coordinator/Assistant Director-type positions and Hall Director jobs. I wouldn't mind being a Hall Director again - as long as it's in a location I really like - but I'd also like to at least get a try at some coordinator/Assistant Director position interviews...just to see if it's even a possibility. I haven't applied to many of those positions yet, so maybe that's why, but it's still making me feel a bit uneasy that I haven't heard anything. It's just making me question whether or not I'm ready/qualified for these type of positions. My colleagues and supervisors all tell me that I am and that I should try to become a coordinator or Assistant Director. So why am I not getting interviews for those positions?
But hey, at least I have some interviews set up now. I did submit a couple more applications this morning and have a few more jobs selected that I will apply for later this week....whenever I find time to do that.
I have a killer headache right now. I took a nap, hoping that it'll get better. It has not. :(
I haven't slept much in the past few days. Between getting ready for the concert and job searching, there just hasn't been much time for sleep. But things are slowly falling into place. My to do list for the concert is still considerable, but with some luck I may actually be able to get everything done in time. I was putting up posters with my co-chair today and a student, who saw us, said she was excited for the concert and would be coming. Yay! It seems that the word has gotten out there.
Things are also slowly falling into place on the job search front. I now have three interviews set up for ACPA. I also have one phone interview set up.
All those interviews are for Hall Director-type positions. I've been applying for a mix between coordinator/Assistant Director-type positions and Hall Director jobs. I wouldn't mind being a Hall Director again - as long as it's in a location I really like - but I'd also like to at least get a try at some coordinator/Assistant Director position interviews...just to see if it's even a possibility. I haven't applied to many of those positions yet, so maybe that's why, but it's still making me feel a bit uneasy that I haven't heard anything. It's just making me question whether or not I'm ready/qualified for these type of positions. My colleagues and supervisors all tell me that I am and that I should try to become a coordinator or Assistant Director. So why am I not getting interviews for those positions?
But hey, at least I have some interviews set up now. I did submit a couple more applications this morning and have a few more jobs selected that I will apply for later this week....whenever I find time to do that.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Frustration
Hey there,
Spring Break is over and I can't say that I'm upset about it. I loved being in Florida - I really love the beach and sun...I need to move south!!! But being with students - even when it is in a "fun" setting is just exhausting. You have to be "on" 24 hours a day...and I was not in the mood for that. I had the job search to worry about, the upcoming Invisible Children Concert that's giving me a headache (more about that later), other work-related issues, personal stuff; I just needed a few moments each day to myself. But getting those was basically impossible.
One day, I thought I'd be really smart and I sent everyone away for dinner while I stayed in to get some work done. I had barely turned on my computer, when my phone rang. Three of students didn't like the restaurant everyone else picked, had left and were now stranded somewhere on the side of the road. I had to go pick them up, drive them to Burger King, wait until they got their food. Then they wanted to stop at Baskin Robbins for ice cream. By the time we got back, the rest of the group was also on their way back. And once again I didn't get any work done.
I finally managed to escape the following day. We went to the beach. When we got out of the van, I told everyone to meet back up at 7:30 pm (after dinner). We walked down to the beach together. When they started pulling out their beach towels, I said needed to make a few phone calls and would just walk down the beach. I walked and walked until I couldn't see them anymore. Finally free!!! I wondered along the beach. I went swimming. I relaxed. I listened to the sounds of nature. I felt like a human being again!
I even decided to skip dinner just to have a few more minutes at the beach. Who needs food when you have a beach and there's no students around?!?
I did really enjoy working on the construction site. Maybe, in case this job search doesn't work out, I have a future as a construction worker. LoL. I'm afraid they don't give visas for that.
But I do greatly enjoy working with my hands once in a while. It's a nice change of pace from sitting in the office.
Needless to say, the job search didn't go well this week. I tried to sneak away a couple times in the evening to write some more cover letters and apply for jobs. I managed to get a few more applications out but not many. I'm starting to panic a little. ACPA is only two weeks away (not even) and so far, I only have one interview set up. AHHHH!!! I know I just sent out some applications Monday and I realize that people were at NASPA and The Placement Exchange, but shouldn't they have gotten back to me by now? What if nobody's interested in hiring me?
Okay, can't panic. I don't have time for that right now. I don't have time for anything right now really. I got back and I haven't been feeling well since. I fell asleep on my couch last night and didn't wake up until this morning at 9 am. I still wasn't feeling much better and after attempting to do work for a while, I gave up and took another nap, which lasted basically all day. I spent the evening putting up banners for the concert - there was a lot of cursing involved. I usually don't curse but this was an exception...seriously...either the trees were planted too far apart, didn't have branches on the bottom or just weren't in a good location. I brought my piano stool with me - yes, I love running around with a piano stool; that doesn't make me look like an idiot at all - and had one of my reliable and amazing RAs with me, who had offered to help me - even though this project isn't part of her responsibility. I can't even count the number of times I almost fell off the stool. I almost hit myself in the face with a knife. I did hit myself in the chest with the tape (fortunately it was just the tape and not the knife). I lost all feeling in my toes and fingers.
This concert was supposed to be fun. Lately it's become a source for quite a lot of frustration. I had a staff member working with me but she's been so stressed over everything lately that she hasn't been much help. I feel like I'm alone with this. I have some great staff members who've been helping out (one helped me paint banners for hours before break; the other one volunteered to help get donations and helped me put up all those sheets tonight...and promised to come along tomorrow and Tuesday to put up more sheets), but in the end all the responsibility falls on me. And if this wasn't enough stress, the band I'm working with has also been giving me a headache lately. They have a new production manager and I can't say that I'm a fan. Today, I noticed that he had changed the picture for the Facebook event for our concert. I had just put up one of the Invisible Children Benefit Concert posters. He changed it to a picture with just the band on it. Argh! This is wrong in so many ways...
1) This is an Invisible Children Benefit Concert. It's about Invisible Children, not about the band.
2) We have one of our a cappella groups performing. They're performing for free while I still have to pay the band. So they definitely deserve some recognition and publicity!
3) Hardly anyone on our campus knows the band. So it's not like they'd draw a large audience. Students here care about Invisible Children, so that'll draw an audience. Students love our a cappella group - that'll draw an audience. A no-name band will not.
And okay, this may be a childish reason but 4) This is my event. I've been working on this for months. He had no right to go in and change my picture. If he didn't like it, he could have sent me a message and asked me to change it. That would have been the polite thing to do. He's not managing Coldplay. This band still needs their fans, especially ones like me who are willing to organize events for them.
Maybe it's just the stress but I'm seriously upset. I'm seriously tempted to say, "Forget about it" and just cancel the concert. This is not worth it!!!
Okay, enough venting. I have tons of work to do. It's 4:30 am and there's no chance I'll get any sleep tonight. What a great way to start the week....
Spring Break is over and I can't say that I'm upset about it. I loved being in Florida - I really love the beach and sun...I need to move south!!! But being with students - even when it is in a "fun" setting is just exhausting. You have to be "on" 24 hours a day...and I was not in the mood for that. I had the job search to worry about, the upcoming Invisible Children Concert that's giving me a headache (more about that later), other work-related issues, personal stuff; I just needed a few moments each day to myself. But getting those was basically impossible.
One day, I thought I'd be really smart and I sent everyone away for dinner while I stayed in to get some work done. I had barely turned on my computer, when my phone rang. Three of students didn't like the restaurant everyone else picked, had left and were now stranded somewhere on the side of the road. I had to go pick them up, drive them to Burger King, wait until they got their food. Then they wanted to stop at Baskin Robbins for ice cream. By the time we got back, the rest of the group was also on their way back. And once again I didn't get any work done.
I finally managed to escape the following day. We went to the beach. When we got out of the van, I told everyone to meet back up at 7:30 pm (after dinner). We walked down to the beach together. When they started pulling out their beach towels, I said needed to make a few phone calls and would just walk down the beach. I walked and walked until I couldn't see them anymore. Finally free!!! I wondered along the beach. I went swimming. I relaxed. I listened to the sounds of nature. I felt like a human being again!
I even decided to skip dinner just to have a few more minutes at the beach. Who needs food when you have a beach and there's no students around?!?
I did really enjoy working on the construction site. Maybe, in case this job search doesn't work out, I have a future as a construction worker. LoL. I'm afraid they don't give visas for that.
But I do greatly enjoy working with my hands once in a while. It's a nice change of pace from sitting in the office.
Needless to say, the job search didn't go well this week. I tried to sneak away a couple times in the evening to write some more cover letters and apply for jobs. I managed to get a few more applications out but not many. I'm starting to panic a little. ACPA is only two weeks away (not even) and so far, I only have one interview set up. AHHHH!!! I know I just sent out some applications Monday and I realize that people were at NASPA and The Placement Exchange, but shouldn't they have gotten back to me by now? What if nobody's interested in hiring me?
Okay, can't panic. I don't have time for that right now. I don't have time for anything right now really. I got back and I haven't been feeling well since. I fell asleep on my couch last night and didn't wake up until this morning at 9 am. I still wasn't feeling much better and after attempting to do work for a while, I gave up and took another nap, which lasted basically all day. I spent the evening putting up banners for the concert - there was a lot of cursing involved. I usually don't curse but this was an exception...seriously...either the trees were planted too far apart, didn't have branches on the bottom or just weren't in a good location. I brought my piano stool with me - yes, I love running around with a piano stool; that doesn't make me look like an idiot at all - and had one of my reliable and amazing RAs with me, who had offered to help me - even though this project isn't part of her responsibility. I can't even count the number of times I almost fell off the stool. I almost hit myself in the face with a knife. I did hit myself in the chest with the tape (fortunately it was just the tape and not the knife). I lost all feeling in my toes and fingers.
This concert was supposed to be fun. Lately it's become a source for quite a lot of frustration. I had a staff member working with me but she's been so stressed over everything lately that she hasn't been much help. I feel like I'm alone with this. I have some great staff members who've been helping out (one helped me paint banners for hours before break; the other one volunteered to help get donations and helped me put up all those sheets tonight...and promised to come along tomorrow and Tuesday to put up more sheets), but in the end all the responsibility falls on me. And if this wasn't enough stress, the band I'm working with has also been giving me a headache lately. They have a new production manager and I can't say that I'm a fan. Today, I noticed that he had changed the picture for the Facebook event for our concert. I had just put up one of the Invisible Children Benefit Concert posters. He changed it to a picture with just the band on it. Argh! This is wrong in so many ways...
1) This is an Invisible Children Benefit Concert. It's about Invisible Children, not about the band.
2) We have one of our a cappella groups performing. They're performing for free while I still have to pay the band. So they definitely deserve some recognition and publicity!
3) Hardly anyone on our campus knows the band. So it's not like they'd draw a large audience. Students here care about Invisible Children, so that'll draw an audience. Students love our a cappella group - that'll draw an audience. A no-name band will not.
And okay, this may be a childish reason but 4) This is my event. I've been working on this for months. He had no right to go in and change my picture. If he didn't like it, he could have sent me a message and asked me to change it. That would have been the polite thing to do. He's not managing Coldplay. This band still needs their fans, especially ones like me who are willing to organize events for them.
Maybe it's just the stress but I'm seriously upset. I'm seriously tempted to say, "Forget about it" and just cancel the concert. This is not worth it!!!
Okay, enough venting. I have tons of work to do. It's 4:30 am and there's no chance I'll get any sleep tonight. What a great way to start the week....
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Service vs. Activism
I've done a lot of service lately - especially because of my living learning community theme...well and obviously I'm on a service trip right now (that I organized...what was I thinking?!?). But I'm honestly not sure if doing service is "the right thing." It feels like it's just a short-term solution to a long-term problem. Wouldn't it be more beneficial if we became activitist, get politically engaged and try to problems in our country that lead to us needing to do service? If we could change political systems and our society so that nobody would live in poverty, we wouldn't have to do service (at least not locally). But then again, if we count on/wait for those long-term solutions, what about all the people living in poverty right now?!? I guess it's one of those situations where you need to find a good balance between the two.
Just a thought....
Just a thought....
Monday, March 9, 2009
Spring Break
Hello everyone,
We now have Spring Break but "overachiever me" is not relaxing at home or at least focusing on job searching; no, I had to organize this alternative spring break trip for my residents. We're in Fort Walton Beach, FL and it's been a good trip but somehow I'm having a hard time really getting into it. I'm fine when I'm on the construction site (today was our first day there) and am busy doing things - but when we're hanging out in the evenings (well, really just yesterday and today), I am grumpy - wishing I was either with friends or alone doing something productive.
I'm starting to freak out a little about job searching. I don't have a single interview set up yet. I've only applied for three positions so far. What am I thinking??? I really need to get on the ball with this but I'm not sure how much I'll be able to accomplish this week. Take today as an example: We were at the construction site, we got back, a couple of us went for a run, then I took a shower and only now have I turned on my laptop to do some work. And of course there's e-mails to check and respond to and all these other things I would much rather do. I also have a headache and am just tired. Not good!
The students I'm on the trip with are really nice but there isn't anyone that I would usually hang out with. So whenever I have a conversation, they're either very student-hall director focused or are job-related (with the two grads that are here). Nobody to get excited with me about news regarding my favorite band; nobody to talk to about the crazy things I've done this semester or those that are coming up.
I'm also spending most of my time thinking about the Invisible Children Benefits Concert we're hosting next week. There's so much work that still needs to get done and me not being in Oxford right now is just not convenient. We need more donations, need to contact newspapers and radio stations (in hope that one of them will cover this event, and get promotional materials out. I just really hope this event turns out alright.
Wow, I almost fell asleep just now. I could feel my eyes closing and had to force myself to open them again. This is not good! Maybe I'll run to the store really quickly, take care of all the shopping and grab some food on the way - and then really focus on job searching later this evening.
Wish me luck!!!
PS: I think I should be freaking out...and part of me is...but overall, I'm really not. I'm feeling pretty apathetic toward this whole job search drama, which probably isn't a good attitude to have. What do you think?
We now have Spring Break but "overachiever me" is not relaxing at home or at least focusing on job searching; no, I had to organize this alternative spring break trip for my residents. We're in Fort Walton Beach, FL and it's been a good trip but somehow I'm having a hard time really getting into it. I'm fine when I'm on the construction site (today was our first day there) and am busy doing things - but when we're hanging out in the evenings (well, really just yesterday and today), I am grumpy - wishing I was either with friends or alone doing something productive.
I'm starting to freak out a little about job searching. I don't have a single interview set up yet. I've only applied for three positions so far. What am I thinking??? I really need to get on the ball with this but I'm not sure how much I'll be able to accomplish this week. Take today as an example: We were at the construction site, we got back, a couple of us went for a run, then I took a shower and only now have I turned on my laptop to do some work. And of course there's e-mails to check and respond to and all these other things I would much rather do. I also have a headache and am just tired. Not good!
The students I'm on the trip with are really nice but there isn't anyone that I would usually hang out with. So whenever I have a conversation, they're either very student-hall director focused or are job-related (with the two grads that are here). Nobody to get excited with me about news regarding my favorite band; nobody to talk to about the crazy things I've done this semester or those that are coming up.
I'm also spending most of my time thinking about the Invisible Children Benefits Concert we're hosting next week. There's so much work that still needs to get done and me not being in Oxford right now is just not convenient. We need more donations, need to contact newspapers and radio stations (in hope that one of them will cover this event, and get promotional materials out. I just really hope this event turns out alright.
Wow, I almost fell asleep just now. I could feel my eyes closing and had to force myself to open them again. This is not good! Maybe I'll run to the store really quickly, take care of all the shopping and grab some food on the way - and then really focus on job searching later this evening.
Wish me luck!!!
PS: I think I should be freaking out...and part of me is...but overall, I'm really not. I'm feeling pretty apathetic toward this whole job search drama, which probably isn't a good attitude to have. What do you think?
Monday, March 2, 2009
Ups and downs...
It's been an interesting few days - yes, since Thursday when I last rambled on about my life on this blog. It feels like it's been much longer than a few days.
The resident situations continued to keep me on my feet. My supervisor must be sick of all the e-mails she's been getting from me; I've tried to label them clearly as there's several situations going on at the same time; each just as concerning and frustrating and impossible to resolve easily.
I should be preparing for our alternative spring break trip to Florida with Habitat for Humanity. We're leaving in 5 days. I have the vans reserved - I just need to get all the drivers to sign the form for driving. I have most of the forms from our residents - of course not all of them though. I don't know yet what types of reflection activities we'll be doing; I'm sure I can wing those though...or come up with something once I get to Florida.
There should be 20 of us going. We've had a lot of problems with people dropping out; surprisingly enough a lot of my RAs did. Initially there were 9 of us who considered going. Now there's 1 RA, my graduate assistant and me. What happened, you ask. Needing to apply for summer internships and grad school, family problems, stress. All things I understand and emphasize with. But really?
I told myself last year that the only way I would do another alternative spring break trip was if I had more staff members going. Not that it's so much work, but it's nice to have a couple different staff members there who can facilitate reflection activities, organize some activities to do for residents when we're not at the construction site, etc. Even for things like communication between the different vans it's helpful to have a few more staff members.
I really didn't think it'd be a problem this year. I was so excited about going with all these staff members. Of course, I ran into problems - why would things ever be easy - this time it was because of getting funding for the staff members. We got funding for the students but not the staff. I fought for them; I tried to make it all work out. All for nothing!
Now I'm stuck 5 days before we're leaving and I don't even know if we can fill all the spots.
Maybe the lesson I should learn from this is that alternative spring break trips are always a lot of hassle and that I shouldn't try to organize one again. Hmmm, please remind me about that next year when I start thinking about Spring Break!!! You know, I could be visiting friends - I could be going to concerts - I could be sleeping in late and relaxing. But oh no, I always have to be such an overachiever. Haha.
Okay, enough whining about Spring Break. I called this entry "ups and downs" and so far I've only been talking about the "downs." I promise there'll be at least one "up," but before we get there, here's one more thing I have to share....
I got sick this weekend. I could barely get out of bed, had the worst headache ever, was coughing and sneezing and I felt like I was radiating heat. Not fun! And of course I couldn't get half the things done that I wanted to accomplish this weekend.
Okay, now to the "ups" (or at least the one "up" I can think of right now):
I finally got around to applying for a few jobs. I applied for three - two through the ACPA Placement site and one that a friend had forwarded me. Today, I've been checking my e-mail pathetically until I realized that there was no way any schools would be able to process my application so quickly and get back to me the day after I submitted it.
I really should be applying for a couple more schools, but hey, at least I started the process, right?
The resident situations continued to keep me on my feet. My supervisor must be sick of all the e-mails she's been getting from me; I've tried to label them clearly as there's several situations going on at the same time; each just as concerning and frustrating and impossible to resolve easily.
I should be preparing for our alternative spring break trip to Florida with Habitat for Humanity. We're leaving in 5 days. I have the vans reserved - I just need to get all the drivers to sign the form for driving. I have most of the forms from our residents - of course not all of them though. I don't know yet what types of reflection activities we'll be doing; I'm sure I can wing those though...or come up with something once I get to Florida.
There should be 20 of us going. We've had a lot of problems with people dropping out; surprisingly enough a lot of my RAs did. Initially there were 9 of us who considered going. Now there's 1 RA, my graduate assistant and me. What happened, you ask. Needing to apply for summer internships and grad school, family problems, stress. All things I understand and emphasize with. But really?
I told myself last year that the only way I would do another alternative spring break trip was if I had more staff members going. Not that it's so much work, but it's nice to have a couple different staff members there who can facilitate reflection activities, organize some activities to do for residents when we're not at the construction site, etc. Even for things like communication between the different vans it's helpful to have a few more staff members.
I really didn't think it'd be a problem this year. I was so excited about going with all these staff members. Of course, I ran into problems - why would things ever be easy - this time it was because of getting funding for the staff members. We got funding for the students but not the staff. I fought for them; I tried to make it all work out. All for nothing!
Now I'm stuck 5 days before we're leaving and I don't even know if we can fill all the spots.
Maybe the lesson I should learn from this is that alternative spring break trips are always a lot of hassle and that I shouldn't try to organize one again. Hmmm, please remind me about that next year when I start thinking about Spring Break!!! You know, I could be visiting friends - I could be going to concerts - I could be sleeping in late and relaxing. But oh no, I always have to be such an overachiever. Haha.
Okay, enough whining about Spring Break. I called this entry "ups and downs" and so far I've only been talking about the "downs." I promise there'll be at least one "up," but before we get there, here's one more thing I have to share....
I got sick this weekend. I could barely get out of bed, had the worst headache ever, was coughing and sneezing and I felt like I was radiating heat. Not fun! And of course I couldn't get half the things done that I wanted to accomplish this weekend.
Okay, now to the "ups" (or at least the one "up" I can think of right now):
I finally got around to applying for a few jobs. I applied for three - two through the ACPA Placement site and one that a friend had forwarded me. Today, I've been checking my e-mail pathetically until I realized that there was no way any schools would be able to process my application so quickly and get back to me the day after I submitted it.
I really should be applying for a couple more schools, but hey, at least I started the process, right?
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